We lead the way in

innovative cable solutions trade investment

June~July | 2010 € 6,90 | www.trade-investment.eu

„Forged steel is the best

form and the highest Norwegian company
develops world´s
quality of steel,“ largest wind turbine
says Dr Manfred Diederichs,
Managing Director, VINCI wins contract
Dirostahl – Karl Diederichs KG
to upgrade London’s
Victoria Tube station

BP‘s Ever-Growing
Oil Spill

RWE
AMPRION
ELIA
FACC
ESL SHIPPING
ALBERT ZIEGLER

Innovation and thinking ahead have always been high priorities Sandra Bojić
for nkt cables – both in terms of environmental responsibility and
nkt cables group GmbH
Sales and Marketing
finding creative processes, products and complete solutions. We
develop, manufacture and market power cables and cable systems
Carlswerk - 1.7 Labor Director of M-Profil d.o.o.
Schanzenstrasse 6-20
for electrical installations as well as for electricity distribution and D-51063 Cologne
transmission. Within development of catenary railway systems we Tel: +49 (0) 221 676-0
are among the world leaders. Read more on nktcables.com www.nktcables.com
 We lead the way in
innovative cable solutions trade investment
June~July | 2010 € 6,90 | www.trade-investment.eu

„Forged steel is the best

form and the highest Norwegian company
develops world´s
quality of steel,“ largest wind turbine
says Dr Manfred Diederichs,
Managing Director, VINCI wins contract
Dirostahl – Karl Diederichs KG
to upgrade London’s
Victoria Tube station

BP‘s Ever-Growing
Oil Spill

RWE
AMPRION
ELIA
FACC
ESL SHIPPING
ALBERT ZIEGLER

Innovation and thinking ahead have always been high priorities Sandra Bojić
for nkt cables – both in terms of environmental responsibility and
nkt cables group GmbH
Sales and Marketing
finding creative processes, products and complete solutions. We
develop, manufacture and market power cables and cable systems
Carlswerk - 1.7 Labor Director of M-Profil d.o.o.
Schanzenstrasse 6-20
for electrical installations as well as for electricity distribution and D-51063 Cologne
transmission. Within development of catenary railway systems we Tel: +49 (0) 221 676-0
are among the world leaders. Read more on nktcables.com www.nktcables.com
 Re-energising
Business

I was recently discussing the energy market with a ment and investment continue to explore our
former colleague and in error referred to the options. The oil spill crisis in America has generated
process of ‘making energy’. Of course, he picked some highly charged rhetoric on the subject of
me up on my mistake, asserting that you can’t power, in all its guises. We have different types of
‘create energy’ – the amount of available energy super-powers trying to understand what went
on Earth remains roughly constant, though trans- wrong. But, in many ways, we know the answer. We
mutable, and therefore our options are to find know that oil is a minefield commodity; its power
ways of getting the most out of existing reserves is awesome yet it is intensely vulnerable. The
or to develop new means to harness energy as it question now is how to maintain an energy in-
presents itself in nature, such as from wind, wave dustry that takes a more careful and considered
or solar power. approach, and ensure that those responsible for
This led me to contemplate how very complicated contributing to this revolution are appropriately
the energy sector is, politically, technologically rewarded for their efforts.
and environmentally. There is no other industrial The very palpable events in the US represent the
sector comparable in terms of the sheer magnitude shakeup that business has had globally. We are all
of value, both economically and to our survival. poised to take a more cautious approach to our
Chief-level executives at the helm of the big power work; but ‘cautious’ does not necessarily mean
companies are tasked with the impossible chal- ‘ambitious’ must take a back seat. On the contrary,
lenge of balancing the huge, immediate demand ambitions are being realised by more ingenious
for energy with the necessity of maintaining a means. Now is a time for looking at how to take
long-term vision: are we protecting the planet? what we already have, and make sure we get the
Are we adequately prepared to sustain ourselves absolute maximum out of it. This not only draws a
when fossil fuel reserves are used up? Should we parallel to the global energy situation, but also
now abandon our use of fossil fuels altogether? recognises that consumption and frivolous invest-
We are still searching for answers, but what we do ment are evidently wasteful pursuits best swapped
know is that the situation is being for innovation within a framework of cor-
fiercely debated, and all the porate, environmental and socio-
while research, develop- economic responsibility.
Gabrielle Brown

Trade & Investment is a business magazine published by Smart Publications, s.r.o., Radnicni 231/4, 787 01 Sumperk, Czech Republic, registered with the
commercial register in Ostrava, Czech Republic, registration number C 44339, business number 28606795.

Editor in Chief : Lucia Balog Writers: Diane Mannion, Philip Bradbury, Ronan O’Connor
Editor: Gabrielle Brown Price of one issue: € 6.90
Production Director: Mgr. Lukáš Ševčík Graphic design, typesetting and design layout, prepress:
Business Development Managers: oranzovareklama.cz, grafika@lp2003.cz
Peter Hlozek Subscription: Handled by SEND Predplatne spol s r.o., Ve Zlibku 1800/77,
Marek Rottenborn 193 00 Prague 9 – Horni Pocernice, www.send.cz
Advertising Manager: Katerina Urbanova Website: www.trade-investment.eu
Sector Manager: Tomas Doubrava

Copyright belongs to the publisher. Publication, copying or distribution of the magazine, of its part or of its content in any way in English or any other language without a written au-
thorisation from the publisher is prohibited. The publication contains illustrations and photographs of ImageBase and Flickr. These pictures are used in accordance with the licence.

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 3 June-July 2010

 Content

/ Editorial
Re-energising Business ............................................................................... 3

/ News from industry sectors

Energy ........................................................................................................... 6
Automotive ................................................................................................... 8
Construction ................................................................................................ 10
Electronics ................................................................................................... 12
Banking & Finance ...................................................................................... 14
Aerospace & Defence

/ Story

BP’s Ever-Growing Oil Spill

/ Companies

ELIA | Europe’s Electric Hub ................................................................................................24

RWE GROUP | High Energy
AMPRION | The Power of Partnership ..............................................................................32
GRADSKA PLINARA ZAGREB | Past, Present and Future .........................................36
KARL DIEDERICHS KG – DIROSTAHL | True as Steel .............................................40
MARIBORSKA LIVARNA MARIBOR | Turning on the Tap and Radiating Success ....44
M-PROFIL | Building Business ..........................................................................................48
FACC | The Way to Success ..................................................................................................52
ESL SHIPPING | Cool Cruising..........................................................................................56
WIENER LINIEN | Model Railways ...................................................................................60
NAC NORDIC AIR AND SEA CARGO | Your Local Nordic Carrier ............................64
ALBERT ZIEGLER | Emergency Supplies ........................................................................68

/ Technology news
Amazing ‘pulse of darkness’ ray tech birthed in US gov labs ....................................................72
Brown chemists report promising advance in fuel-cell technology ..........................................72
Arrayit Corporation technology may provide vital clues to detoxification of the oceans ..............73

/ Interview

Sandra Bojić:
“For me the two things in life that I cannot live without are my music
and my wonderful six year old son.”

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 4 June-July 2010

 16
Aerospace & Defence
Emirates orders 32 Airbus A380 Super Jumbos valued at
US$ 11.5B; adds to 58 previously ordered A380 aircraft

Emirates, the Dubai-based inter- of the 21st century to 90 super-

national airline, placed an order jumbos. p.
with Airbus for an additional 32 The order for the additional air-

20
A380 aircraft, taking the total craft has a list price of US$ 11.5
firm order for the iconic flagship billion (AED 42.2).

p.
BP’s Ever-Growing Oil Spill
Obama’s announcement surprised some
of his environmental supporters

On April 20, less than a month
after President Barack Obama
announced a sweeping new fede-
ral program to promote offshore
oil and gas development in the
Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic
Ocean, the U.S. was hit with what
has become the biggest oil spill in
its history.

RWE GROUP
High Energy

RWE AG is already a major Diane Mannion discusses the

force in the energy industry,
but its acquisition of Essent
NV in September 2009 is likely
to take its position in the mar-
ket to an even higher level.
impact of this merger and the-
future for RWE.
On 30th September 2009 RWE
announced its acquisition of
the Dutch company Essent NV.

Sandra Bojić p. 28
74
“For me the two things in life that I cannot live with-
out are my music and my wonderful six year old son,”

says Ms Sandra Bojić, the Sales
and Marketing Director of M-
Profil. Her role is a demanding
one in a thriving company that
specialises in the production of
metal components for the con-
struction industry. This 15 year
old company is based in Croatia
and is growing continually, with
p.
plans to expand...

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 5 June-July 2010


As Obama flies in, BP
finally has cause for
hope
Engineers with BP were preparing last
night to place a new containment device
over the crippled Gulf of Mexico oil well
in advance of a third visit to the region
this morning by President Barack
Obama.
While the threat of failure remained high,
the US Coast Guard reported that the
company’s fleet of robotic submersibles
had succeeded in cutting off the broken
and twisted riser pipe from the well after
more than two days of trying. It cleared
the way for the latest “top-hat” dome to
be put in place. It is “a significant step
forward”, Admiral Thad Allen told
reporters.
The crisis off the Louisiana coast continues
to manifest itself on multiple fronts, from
political to financial, and ecological. The
National Centre for Atmospheric Research
issued a warning that oil from the leak
could float around the tip of Florida and
show up on the US East Coast as far as
North Carolina within weeks. Two leading
Wall Street rating agencies downgraded
BP, stating the growing risks of long-term
damage to its reputation and its bottom
line. Both Fitch Ratings and Moody’s cited
worries about growing liabilities for the
company in likely clean-up and
compensation costs. The White House
said the US government was yesterday
sending BP a $69 million bill for costs so
far in its response to the spill.
For Mr Obama, the problem remains
convincing a sceptical public that he has
done enough to respond to the
catastrophe. He is facing deep political
peril from the ruptured well and the risks
get higher with every day that passes
without it being plugged. Analysts
speculate that the spill could overwhelm
his agenda in the crucial few months
before mid-term elections, at a time when
Democrats already face a big Republican
comeback.
“We did respond aggressively,” Carol
Browner, the top energy aide to Mr Obama,
said last night, but also admitted there
were “things we should have done more
quickly”, at the start of the crisis in April.
That included, she said, releasing
Government estimates of the scale of the
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Energy
leak. Insinuating that the company may
have downplayed the rate, she said: “BP
has a financial interest in the flow-rate.
They will pay a per-barrel, per-day fine.”
Ominous comparisons continue to surface
between Mr Obama’s unexpected plight
and the Iran hostage crisis that lasted 444
days. Mr Obama “will have to hope he
doesn’t end up as Jimmy Carter”, wrote
David Broder, the veteran commentator
in The Washington Post. Mr Carter lost his
1980 re-election bid after being battered
by his failure to resolve the hostage stand-
off.
With the President coming and a
conference call planned with analysts
today, Anthony Hayward, BP’s CEO, can
only hope that the “top-hat” will work as
planned. Last night he said it would be at
least 24 hours before it was fitted and
refused to accept suggestions that BP
should not pay out $10bn in dividends
due to investors shortly.
Hitherto every effort to stop the leak has
failed. The “top-hat” should allow for the
siphoning of at least some of the leaking
oil and gas to a ship on the surface. But
difficulties in making a clean cut when
shearing off the riser pipe mean it is
unlikely to fit tightly.
So far Louisiana has suffered the worst
ecological damage since the 20 April blast
on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig that
killed 11 workers. The slick has eclipsed
the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster as the
worst oil spill in US history. The north-
eastwards drift of the slick has put coastal
residents in Alabama and Mississippi on
red alert while the authorities in Pensacola
have been warned to expect to see oil
come ashore as early as this weekend.
“BP has ruined the island, our way of life,
and our tranquillity,” lamented Vickie
Connolly, who owns a pub on Alabama’s
Dauphin Island that has seen tar balls and
debris wash up.
Some experts had warned that cutting
off the broken pipe could increase the
rate of flow of oil from the well by as much
as 20 per cent until the “top-hat” was firmly
in place. Admiral Allen last night said it
was too soon to know if that was
happening. The Government thinks the
well is spilling as many as 19,000 gallons
every day.
US backlash: Tide
of anger reaches
forecourt
Americans fed up with BP and the response
to the spill in the Gulf of Mexico are taking
to the forecourt and to Facebook to let
the company know their feelings.
The Reverend Jesse Jackson has been
among those calling for a boycott of BP
stations across the United States while as
many as 300,000 people have joined a
boycott-BP page on Facebook.
Also popular are T-shirts showing the
petal-sunburst “Beyond Petroleum” logo
of the company turning black.
A tide of disgust at the energy giant will
serve further to damage its reputation
but may have little direct impact on its
bottom line, experts say. Revenue from
petrol stations represents only a fraction
of the company’s earnings. Most of the
garages are run by independent owners
who may suffer more than the
company.
“I would urge consumers to think about
who actually gets hurt with their boycotts,”
said John Kleine, executive director of a
trade group representing BP petrol station
owners and operators who also depend
on attached convenience shops.
“Ultimately, small, local entrepreneurs and
their families are the ones who get hurt,
and not necessarily BP.”
Norwegian company
develops world´s
largest wind turbine
As fossil fuels continue to diminish and
climate change poses an ever-increasing
threat, scientists around the world are
searching for new and more efficient
methods of generating energy. Wind
energy is one of the more promising
alternative energy sources and Norwegian
scientists are currently in the development
stages of what promises to be the world’s
largest wind turbine. As if creating the
biggest wind turbine in the world was not
enough, it also floats. Current plans for
the world’s largest wind turbine have the
machine standing 533 feet tall.
6 June-July 2010
The proposed rotor diameter of this
machine is 475 feet. Obviously, these
gargantuan dimensions make it difficult
to imagine many places able to
accommodate such a device. Fortunately,
the floating design makes the turbine
suitable for open ocean use.
In addition to being the world’s largest
wind turbine, the proposed machine
(which is to be built by the Norwegian
compan Sway), will also be the most
powerful. A single floating turbine will be
able to generate 10-megawatts to power
more than 2,000 homes. These figures
make this proposed new design at least
three times more powerful than the
existing wind turbines in use today.
The floating design gives this generator
a huge advantage over other wind-power
generators because the device can be
placed in deeper water. The machine’s
tower is a floating pole filled with ballast
beneath the ocean’s surface. This gives
the world’s largest wind turbine a low
center of gravity, which prevents tipping.
The generator is anchored to the sea floor
with a single pipe and a suction anchor.
This design allows the turbine to tilt 5-8
degrees as well as rotate freely to generate
power from any wind direction.
Sway plans on installing the device in
2011. The prototype of this machine will
cost an estimated $67.5 million dollars.
Sway plans on testing the design on land
first in Oeygarden, Southwestern Norway.
If the design is successful, Sway will
continue testing seafaring prototypes.
Currently, Norway is one of the world’s
top oil and gas producers. Despite this
fact, Norway generates most of its own
power from hydroelectric plants. Norway’s
dedication to designing and building the
world’s largest wind turbine showcases
the countries commitment to alternative
energy, and serves to further illustrate
how important this cause actually is. If
the world’s largest wind turbine is a
success, it will mark a major stride in
humanity’s quest to reduce its dependence
on fossil fuels.
Smart chips
nomitor solar panel
performance
There’s a lot of talk about making power
meters and the electric grid “smart”
enough to handle additional energy from
solar panels. National Semiconductor
wants to make the solar panels themselves
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
smarter. They’ve developed a chip that
integrates into the junction boxes of solar
panels, optimizing power production.
National Semi calls it SolarMagic. The
technology was released over years ago,
but was only available as an add-on and
only now is it integrable. SolarMagic helps
minimize a major problem for solar panels:
shading. When just a few solar cells within
a panel become shaded, it can cause
failure in the entire string of cells and
reduce output for the whole solar array.
SolarMagic chips are designed to adjust
the voltage and current of the panels in
that array to assure that they are all the
same, increasing overall power output.
The chip also works like a smart meter by
collecting information and data on system
performance, then relaying it over the
internet for easy monitoring.
SunEdison retrofitted SolarMagic chip
sets into one of its existing installations
and reportedly found that performance
increased by 20 percent. According to
National Semiconductor, the first new
panels with integrated SolarMagic chips
— costing 12 cents per watt — will be
unveiled at the Intersolar Europe
conference in Munich, Germany.
Japanese solar
hydrogen electrolysis
reduces voltage 50%
One of the problems of brute force
electrolysis has always been the amount
of energy it takes to split water into
hydrogen and oxygen. The use of different
kinds of metal or chemical catalysts, sound
wave frequencies and other methods to
loosen the bonds between hydrogen and
oxygen atoms have met with encouraging
success.
And, another attempt at lowering the
voltage requirements of splitting water
has gained laboratory success by Japanese
researchers. The Solar Light Energy
Conversion Group, the Energy Technology
Research Institute and the National
Institute of Advanced Industrial Science
and Technology have developed a
tungsten oxide (WO3) photocatalyst that
along with solar energy reduces the
voltage requirements for producing
hydrogen by 50-percent.
According to the press release, “The high
efficiency of the WO3 photocatalyst was
achieved using a new method—treatment
of the surface of the photocatalyst with
Cesium (Cs). The activity of the treated
catalyst is more than ten times that of
untreated catalysts. The quantum yield
of the new photocatalyst is 19% under
visible light of wavelength 420 nm and is
approximately 50 times the previously
reported values (0.4%)*. The use of solar
energy can reduce the voltage required
for water electrolysis by almost 50%.
Hence, the low-cost production of
hydrogen is expected.”
One of the main arguments that critics
have of producing hydrogen (even from
renewable methods such as solar) is that
it takes too much energy to produce H2
and why not just store this energy in
batteries. By significantly lowering the
voltage needed to produce hydrogen fuel
from water, this argument is taken
away.
Hydrogen cars have a longer range and
much quicker refueling times than battery
electric vehicles and if the production of
hydrogen is cost effective this means
that one more hurdle will be crossed in
the realization of a hydrogen-based
transportation system.
7 June-July 2010
 Automotive

Ford offers payouts

to Mercury dealers
based on percentage
of business
Ford Motor Company is offering the 1,700
dealerships with a Mercury franchise a
cash compensation for the loss of the
brand.
The compensation figures, delivered to
dealers in packets this morning, range
from the very low thousands up to about
$200,000, sources said.
Ford announced on Wednesday it would
discontinue the Mercury brand. It will
cease production on all Mercury vehicles
in the fourth quarter. There will be no 2010
model year Mercury products.
The dealer compensation is based on a
three-year sales average of Mercury as a
percentage of a dealership’s total sales. It
also factors in repayment for signage and
parts and a blue-sky value, told Ken
Czubay, Ford’s U.S. sales chief.
“We feel that the compensation we’re
offering them is reasonable and fair,” said But one dealer, who asked not to be “We’ve gone above and beyond,” Czubay
Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the identified, said Ford offered him nearly said. “At a time like this, you may think the
Americas in an interview with reporters. $200,000. He said that’s not enough, given franchise was worth more than what
“It is beyond what the franchise agreement he invested millions in a new Mercury- people are willing to pay for it. But I can
states. It is beyond what state law states. Lincoln showroom just three years ago. assure you that from how we addressed
It’s well beyond what other competitors it with our dealers, this was very fair and
Another dealer said his Lincoln-Mercury
have done in the marketplace.” rounded up.”
store’s annual revenues are about $2
For example, most Mercury parts are million and that he sells about 350 Mercury
commingled with Ford parts, Czubay said. units per year. “So even if they give me
Ford will let dealers keep all the Mercury $500,000, it’s not enough,” the dealer said. Mercedes-Benz unveils
“And now my property isn’t worth as
parts and pay them 100 percent of the
value of those parts. much.” new 2011 SL550 Night
“If 10 percent of a dealer’s business was According to sources, the formula gives Edition
Mercury business and he had $1 million dealers whose Mercury sales were 0 to 25
percent $1,500 per unit retailed annually. Mercedes-Benz USA announced today
in parts inventory, he’d have theoretically
Dealers with 26 to 50 percent Mercury the limited-edition 2011 SL550 Night
$100,000 in Mercury parts,” Czubay said.
sales get $1,650 per unit, those with 51 Edition. Based on the iconic SL-Class
“We said you keep the parts and we’ll
to 75 percent get $2,000 per unit, and coupe/roadster, the highlight of the SL550
write you a check for $100,000. No one in
those with 76 to 100 percent get Night Edition is its matte-finish designo
the industry has ever done anything like
$2,500. magno night black paint and Black
that.”
premium leather interior. Limited to just
100 units, this exclusive model will be
available in U.S. showrooms in early
2010.
The special designo magno night black
paint finish -- specially developed
exclusively for the SL550 Night Edition
-- works particularly well with the dramatic
design of the SL-Class. The Night Edition
rolls on 19-inch AMG five-spoke light-alloy

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 8 June-July 2010

wheels in a two-tone, high-gloss finish,
silver-painted front brake calipers with
“Mercedes-Benz” script and darkened
headlamps/tail lights help distinguish the
exclusive status of the SL550 Night
Edition.
The interior features a striking contrast of
dark Black premium leather and bright
chrome trim, with numerous fine details.
The newly-designed seats have arrow-
shaped seams and silver-colored
contrasting features, while the sports
steering wheel, shift lever and roof lining
are trimmed in black. The trim strip of the
wind-deflector has a high-gloss finish
complimented by the silver-colored vents
of the AIRSCARF® system, which bathes
the driver in warm air when the convertible
top is down during cooler weather.
VW says Italdesign
buy will boost its
growth strategy
VW will acquire a 90 percent stake in
Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A., VW announced
at the beginning of June this year.
The Giugiaro family will retain 10 percent
in the 42-year-old automotive styling and
engineering company that is famous for
designing cars such as the first-generation
VW Golf.
VW CEO Martin Winterkorn said Italdesign
will make an important contribution to
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
the automaker’s 2018 global growth
strategy.
“The Volkswagen Group will be continuing
its model initiative over the coming years
and will benefit from the capacity and
competence of Italdesign,” Winterkorn
said in a statement.
Italdesign Chairman Giorgetto Giugiaro
said his company will have a more secure
future within the VW Group.
“We have grown from a small studio to a
substantial industrial organization which
is able to deal with global automakers.
There are times when individual egoism
has to step back to ensure the future
sustainability of jobs,” he told reporters at
a press conference here to announce the
VW acquisition.
VW, Europe’s largest car company, aims
to become the world’s largest automaker
by 2018 with sales of 10 million vehicles
a year, compared with 6.29 million last
year. The German-based company needs
more designers and engineers to help
reach the goal. In 2010 alone, VW Group
plans to add 60 models, including
upgrades.
VW has cooperated with Italdesign for
decades with Giugiaro designing not only
the first-generation Golf, but also concepts
for important models such as the first VW
Passat, Scirocco and Audi 80.
Italdesign is also working on VW’s new
Up family of minicars.
Work on new Mini variants
Giugiaro said Italdesign, which currently
has contracts with other automakers
including BMW, will work exclusively for
VW Group brands in future. “They have
enough brands to fill all our resources,”
he said.
For existing contracts, including the
engineering for BMW’s new Mini roadster
and coupe cars, the decision on whether
Italdesign will continue with projects is
up to clients, Giugiaro said.
“We are ready to complete all the projects
we are working on and we will guarantee
100 percent secrecy. It is up to our clients
to decide if they want to continue,” he
said.
Enzo Pacella, Italdesign CEO, said the
company has about another year of work
on the Mini roadster and coupe.
Under VW control, Italdesign will be run
by a seven-member board of directors,
that will include four members from VW.
Winterkorn said he and Audi CEO Rupert
Stadler will be on the board, together and
two other VW group executives. Giugiaro
and his son Fabrizio will have seats on the
board.
VW did not give any details on the price
it paid for a 90.1 percent stake in Italdesign,
which has annual sales of more than 100
million euros ($122 million).
VW Chief Financial Officer Hans Dieter
Poetsch said the two companies had
decided not to make public the price of
the transaction, but added that Italdesign
had a positive development in the past
years despite the global crisis, “so we paid
a substantial price for something good.”
Piech connection
VW Chairman Ferdinand Piech, who is a
close friend of Giugiaro, was at Italdesign’s
headquarters in Moncalieri, 15km south
of Turin, for the announcement. He did
not attend a press conference but was
present when Winterkorn and Giugiaro
spoke to Italdesign’s staff.
Piech spent the summer of 1972 working
at the Italdesign to learn about design
and engineering from Giugiaro.
Italdesign was co-founded by Giugiaro in
1968 and currently has 975 employees
and 800 computer aided design
workstations. VW said it will acquire its
Italdesign shares through Audi’s Italian
subsidiary Lamborghini Holding S.p.A. A
VW spokesman said this was being done
to keep the company’s Italian operations
bundled together.
9 June-July 2010

VINCI wins contract
to upgrade London’s
Victoria Tube station
Transport for London (TfL) has awarded
the contract to upgrade Victoria Tube
station to VINCI BAM Nuttall Ltd, the
consortium comprising Taylor Woodrow
(VINCI Construction UK) and BAM Nuttall
Ltd.
The project calls for modernising and
improving access to one of London
Underground’s busiest and most
congested stations, with 80 million
passengers a year.
The station will be upgraded in two
phases.
• The first phase includes building a
new entrance and a new ticket hall.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Construction
Works will start in 2011 and should be
completed in 2016.
• The second phase involves installing
new lifts and escalators in the existing
ticket hall, which will be doubled in
size. Delivery of this phase is scheduled
for 2018.
This further success follows on from the
contract won by VINCI BAM Nuttall in
December 2009 to upgrade London’s
Tottenham Court Road Tube station.
Skanska to build
Statoil’s new office
in Oslo
(assignment for IT Fornebu totals NOK 1.3
billion, approximately SEK 1.6 billion)
Skanska has been commissioned to build
an office in Oslo. The contract amount is
NOK 1.3 billion, approximately SEK 1.6
billion, which will be included in order
bookings for the second quarter of
2010.
The customer is the Norwegian company
IT Fornebu, which is developing the former
airport area, Fornebu, in western Oslo.
The new building will be the office of the
Norwegian energy company Statoil.
The contract pertains to an office building
with five connected nine floor buildings.
The project comprises a total of 66,800
square meters. “Naturally, we are pleased
to be entrusted with this major and key
project. It will contribute strongly to our
order bookings and I am convinced that
the owner and tenants will benefit from
the modern and functional premises,” says
Petter Eiken, President of Skanska Norway.
Skanska will participate in the design
10 June-July 2010
process, which will commence immediately.
Construction will start in January 2011 and
the project is scheduled for completion
in September 2012.
Skanska will implement the project under
its Green Workplace concept, which is
Skanska Norway’s own initiative for
environmental labeling of construction
sites. The aim is to reduce energy
consumption for such items as lighting
and heating. The concept also imposes
requirements on vehicles and chemical
products.
Skanska Norway focuses on construction
and civil engineering operations. The unit
has approximately 4,100 employees. In
2009, Skanska Norway reported revenue
of about SEK 11 billion. In Norway, Skanska
is also active in the development of
housing projects and public-private
partnerships.
STRABAG wins new
large orders worth
€ 156 million in Romania
and Abu Dhabi
Central and Eastern Europe’s largest
construction company, has won two new
large orders in Romania and Abu Dhabi.
In Romania, STRABAG AG signed an
agreement for the rehabilitation of
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
national road DN 67B. The client is
Romania’s national road construction
agency CNADNR SA. In a joint venture
with two Romanian road construction
companies, STRABAG will modernise 188.2
km of the national road between Scoarţa
and Piteşti over a period of 36 months.
The total value of the order is € 89 million,
with STRABAG’s share amounting to € 62
million (70 %). Construction is to begin in
summer 2010.
In Abu Dhabi, STRABAG subsidiary Ed.
Züblin AG has been hired to build the
“non-process buildings” for the expansion
of the Takreer Refinery in Ruwais. The
turnkey project, commissioned by the
Abu Dhabi Oil Refining company (Takreer),
comprises 17 buildings as well as access
roads and extensive outdoor facilities on
a total space of 205,273 m². Construction
will begin in June 2010 and is expected
to last 38 months. STRABAG’s share is
100 %.
New orders for over
EUR 1 billion in
Asia-Pacific area
Remediation of Hunter River riverbed in
Australia - Extended services for mines in
Indonesia and Australia.
HOCHTIEF subsidiary Leighton has
received orders with a total value of
around EUR 1.07 billion through its
participating interests: Thiess Services is
remediating a stretch of river bed in the
south arm of the Hunter River in New
South Wales, Australia. The project is worth
almost EUR 283 million (A$ 405 million).
Leighton Asia will mine coal in the
Indonesian MSJ mine for a further six years
and receive a total of around EUR 772
million (A$ 1.1 billion) in return. Leighton
Contractors was recently commissioned
to perform additional services in the
Woodie Woodie Mine in Western Australia
for three years for almost EUR 119 million
(A$ 170 million).
On the Hunter River, Thiess Services is
remediating a section of the river adjacent
to a former steelworks on behalf of BHP
Billiton. As part of the contract it will also
be building the necessary facilities and
ensuring the proper disposal of
contaminants. The company has already
been involved in the project performing
early works for twelve months and has
now begun the actual remediation. This
will take until 2012. Leighton Asia will
increase production at the MSJ mine in
the north of the Indonesian region of East
Kalimantan to eight million tons of coal
per annum and remove the overburden.
Production at the Woodie Woodie Mine
is set to be increased to around 1.4 million
cubic metre per month by the end of 2011.
Leighton Contractors will load and haul
bulk waste materials at the manganese
ore mine.
11 June-July 2010

Fujitsu, Toshiba to
merge mobile-phone
businesses
Fujitsu Ltd and Toshipa Corp announced
in the middle of June 2010 plans to merge
their mobile-phone businesses, aiming
to become the number one provider of
mobile phones in Japan.
According to the agreement, Toshiba will
transfer its mobile-phone business to a
new company to be established October
1. Fujitsu will then acquire a majority of
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Electronics
the shares in the company. Further details
of the planned merger were not
released.
The move comes as competition in the
mobile-phone market, particularly in
smart phones, is intensifying. On
Wednesday, top handset maker Nokia
warned that it could miss its Q2 handset
division sales target on lower than
expected ASPs (average selling prices)
and mobile-device volumes. Nokia also
said it expects its mobile-device value
market share to be slightly lower in 2010,
compared to 2009.
Nokia, which had about 35% of the
worldwide handset market in Q1, has faced
increased competition in smart phones as
Apple‘s iPhone continues to fly off shelves,
RIM‘s Blackberry remains a popular
business-side choice, and devices
based on open-source Android
platform gain momentum.
Fujitsu and Toshiba made note
of smar t phones in their
announcement and said they
plan to develop new handsets
for markets in and outside
Japan.
Fujitsu manufactures mobile
phones for sale through its
partner NT T Docomo Inc.
Meanwhile, Toshiba in Japan
provides its handsets through
sales partners KDDI Corp, NTT
Docomo, and Softbank Mobile
Corp.
The two companies plan to sign a final
contract at the end of July.
European research
program targets
energy-aware
electronics design
Several major semiconductor industry
companies including ON Semiconductor,
Numonyx, NXP, and STMicroelectronics
have teamed with European design
centers, universities, and institutes to
establish standards and contribute to
building a solid energy-aware electronics
design base for Europe.
The partners in the new publicly funded
research program, dubbed„END - Models,
Solutions, Methods and Tools for Energy-
Aware Design,“ have begun a three-year
ENIAC (European Nanoelectronics Initiative
Advisory Council) project to pursue energy
efficiency through a holistic approach
that unifies, under a common design
platform, the development of modeling,
simulation, design, and EDA techniques
for a wide range of devices and systems.
The partners made specific note of digital
blocks, analog/RF blocks, and discrete
components. The project will also address
the conception and experimentation of
new power supply systems, with particular
emphasis on energy management
aspects.
„The ultimate objective of the END project
is to bring innovative energy-aware design
solutions and EDA technologies into the
product development of the industrial
partners of the Consortium,“ said Salvatore
Rinaudo, END project coordinator and
industrial and multisegment sector CAD
R&D director at STMicroelectronics, in a
statement today. „We will enable the
design and manufacture of electronic
circuits that will be at the basis of the
green information society of the future.“
END‘s project goals include the
development of power models for non-
bulk CMOS devices, a unified low-power
design methodology for heterogeneous
systems and SOC devices, energy-efficient
building blocks for heterogeneous
systems, energy-efficient IP components
for SOCs, energy management of systems
based on multiple, heterogeneous
supplies, and demonstrators of solar
energy and wireless sensor systems.
The project will cost approximately $15.5
million (12.6 million Euros), with funding
provided by both the ENIAC joint
undertaking and from the public
authorities of Belgium, Greece, Italy, and
Slovakia. The ENIAC joint undertaking is
a public-private partnership with the
European Commission, member states,
associated states and European R&D
actors, and levers private and national
investments.
Handset competition
pushes Nokia Q2
estimate down
Nokia lowered its Q2 estimates at the end
of June, pointing to the recent depreciation
of the Euro and the competitive handset
12 June-July 2010
environment, making particular note of
the high-end of the market.
Nokia, the top mobile-phone maker with
about 35% of the market in Q1, has faced
increased competition in smart phones
as Apple‘s iPhone continues to fly off
shelves, RIM‘s Blackberry remains a popular
business-side choice, and devices based
on open-source Android platform gain
momentum.
The Finland-based company today said
it now expects its devices and services
group‘s net sales to be at the lower end
of, or slightly below, its previously
expected range of $8.24 billion to $8.86
billion (EUR 6.7 billion to EUR 7.2 billion)
for Q2. Nokia noted lower than previously
expected ASPs (average selling prices)
and mobile-device volumes. The company
in Q1 reported sales of about $8.24 billion
(EUR 6.7 billion) from the group.
Nokia also provided an update on its full-
year 2010 outlook. The company continues
to expect industry mobile-device volumes
to be up approximately 10% in 2010 and
continues to target its mobile-device
volume market share to be flat in 2010,
both as compared to 2009. However, Nokia
now expects its mobile-device value
market share to be slightly lower in 2010,
compared to 2009. That compares to
Nokia‘s previous target to increase its
mobile-device value market share slightly
in 2010, compared to 2009.
Nokia is slated to provide its Q2 results
and more details on its 2010 full-year
outlook on July 22.
ARM, Freescale, IBM,
Samsung,
ST-Ericsson, TI form
Linux company
With major industry alignment and
resource investment in open-source
projects, Linaro looks to advance Linux
for ARM-based Web-centric consumer
devices, such as smart phones, tablets,
and digital TVs.
Six major electronics industry companies
are putting their weight behind open
source, announcing the formation of a
not-for-profit company committed to
providing new resources and industry
alignment for software developers using
Linux on SOCs.
The company Linaro starts up with support
from ARM, Freescale, IBM, Samsung, ST-
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Ericsson, and Texas Instruments, all of well as automotive entertainment and
which will invest resources in open-source enterprise equipment.
projects that can then be used by Linux-
„The dramatic growth of open-source
based distributions.
software development can now be seen
Linaro‘s goal is to provide „a stable and in Internet-based, always-connected
optimized base for distributions and mobile and consumer products,“ said Tom
developers by creating new releases of Lantzsch, executive officer of Linaro and
optimized tools, kernel, and middleware ARM‘s executive VP of corporate
software validated for a wide range of development, in a statement. „Linaro will
SOCs, every six months.“ help accelerate this trend further by
increasing investment on key open-source
Linaro‘s first software and tools release is projects and providing industry alignment
due out in November, and will provide with the community to deliver the best
optimizations for the latest range of ARM Linux-based products for the benefit of
Cortex-A family of processors. the consumer.“
Linaro pointed to Linux-based distributions Linaro said it aims to unite the open-source
such as well-known Android, smart- engineering resources within its member
phone-focused LiMo, and MeeGo, the companies with the broad open-source
recently announced merged Moblin- community and intends to work in
Maemo software platform from Intel and partnership with the Linux Foundation to
Nokia, as possible users of its releases. align on core operating principles.
Traditionally, open-source software Supporting a typical open-source open-
developers have focused on the enterprise door-like policy, Linaro said it is a growing
and computing markets. Alternatively, organization with additional partners
Linaro noted use of its releases for Web- expected to join and invited interested
centric consumer devices, such as smart companies to discuss membership with
phones, tablets, and digital televisions, as its executives.
C ompetitive price
Q ualified products
N ice services
R apid delivery
Share Electronics Co., Ltd is a professional
manufacturer of electronic Transformers,
inductors , coils, chokes and power solutions.
We are committed to servicing you with our wide
selections of products, as well as our expertise to
handle your substantial capacity of requirements.
We stand behind the products we sell. Our goal
is to supply our valued customers with finest
quality products, competitive price, excellent
technical support and customer service.
Share our sincerity is our principle .
SHARE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED (HONGKONG)
12/F,WAH HEN COMM BLDG,381-383 HENNESSY RD,
WANCHAI,HONG KONG
TEL: +852 2838 1977 FAX:+852 2831 9939
http://www.secl.cc E-mail: sales@secl.cc
SHARE ELECTRONICS CO., LTD (FACTORY 1#)
4/F,YECHENG BUILDING,GOLDEN COAST RD.,SANZAO
ZHUHAI,GUANGDONG,CHINA 519040
TEL: +86 756 7512727 FAX:+86 756 7512737
SHARE ELECTRONICS CO., LTD (FACTORY 2#)
YANSHI TOWN,LIANYUAN CITY, HUNAN,CHINA 417100
13 June-July 2010

Allianz chief wants
bigger piece of
indexed-life market
Gary C. Bhojwani says the annuity player
believes that agents selling the firm’s
popular indexed annuities have the skills
to also sell indexed life insurance
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North
America, already a major player in the
indexed-annuity arena, is looking to grab
a bigger share of the indexed-life-insurance
market.
“We’re currently looking specifically at
indexed life,” president and chief executive
Gary C. Bhojwani, president and chief
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Banking and Finance
executive of Allianz, said in an interview
with InvestmentNews. “Indexed life is small
enough where we can be focused, and
when we look at the underlying expertise
required to market it, it’s consistent with
our distribution force.”
The carrier manufactures the top-selling
indexed annuity, the MasterDex X,
according to researcher AnnuitySpecs.
Mr. Bhojwani said that many of the
insurance agents who currently sell
indexed annuities have the know-how to
sell indexed life insurance effectively.
To increase its presence in the indexed-life
space, Allianz will have to compete against
the likes of Aviva USA and Pacific Life
Insurance Co., the first and second top
sellers of the product for the first
quarter.
“It’s a smart move for Allianz Life,” said
Sheryl Moore president and chief executive
of AnnuitySpecs.com. “All annuities are
capital intensive, and they’re not very
profitable. But life insurance products can
make it a better profit. Coming out of a
capital anorexic environment, this is how
you offset profitability.”
Allianz will continue developing its annuity
line as well, Mr. Bhojwani said. Recent
meetings with broker-dealer and
wirehouse executives, he said, revealed
that many firms’ top priority is to grow
annuity sales in 2010 and 2011 as advisers’
center more on income planning.
The insurer in either late summer or early
fall expects to release a annuity product
that will address inflation. Allianz also has
plans drawn up for a registered indexed
annuity but won’t take it to market anytime
soon.
Mr. Bhojwani also noted that the company
has taken a “serious” look at a hybrid
annuity product with long-term-care
features, but Allianz is “not at a point where
we can do something about it.”
A just-released study from Allianz,
“Reclaiming the Future,” revealed that
people continue to be nervous about the
prospect of retiring, as 92% of the 3,257
adults polled said they believe there is a
“retirement crisis.” Fully 35% of the polled
adults feel “totally unprepared” for
retirement, but an even greater
concentration – 54% – of those in their
late 40s feel that way.
Making those individuals aware of
annuities and their benefits begins at the
adviser level, Mr. Bhojwani said.
“There’s a significant effort to educate on
the reality of annuities and retirement,”
Mr. Bhojwani said. “We’re in the business
of selling annuities, but we don’t want the
importance of education to get lost in
pushing products.”
Money managers see
pay dirt in oil crisis
Emerging markets, natural gas, renewable
energy are among a variety of promising
sectors
14 June-July 2010
As a result of BP PLC’s oil spill in the Gulf
of Mexico, many money managers see a
host of investing opportunities in
emerging markets, natural gas, renewable
e n e r g y, c l e a n u p t e c h n o l o g i e s ,
environmental consulting and, in some
cases, the oil industry itself.
For instance, given the potential damage
to the fishing industry in the gulf, it is a
good time to invest in countries that have
big fishing industries, managers said.
“All the shrimp farms in South America
are gearing up for large volumes,” said
David R. Kotok, chairman and chief
investment officer of Cumberland Advisors,
which manages $1.4 billion in assets.
Hooked on Peru
Peru, which produces 10% of the world’s
fish catch, is more attractive in the wake
of the BP debacle, he said. Cumberland
just added BlackRock Inc.’s iShares MSCI
All Peru Capped Index ETF (EPU) to its
portfolios.
“I would have added Peru anyway, but
this incident gives it a kicker,” Mr. Kotok
said.
A more obvious bet for managers is natural
gas, which many believe will get a boost
as the price of energy rises in light of
upcoming regulation. President Barack
Obama’s moratorium on deep-water
drilling also is expected to increase the
price of oil.
Tom Lydon, a registered investment
adviser and president of Global Trends
Investments, is holding on to two
exchange-traded funds that invest in
natural gas: United States Natural Gas
Fund (UNG) and First Trust Portfolios LP’s
First Trust ISE Revere Natural Gas ETF
(FCG).
Although the renewable-energy sector
has shown weakness, managers anticipate
that this market will take off as the Obama
administration opens up the market for
renewable energy in the United States.
The Standard & Poor’s Global Clean Energy
Index was down 35.8% year-to-date as of
last Wednesday, and solar-company stocks
in particular have taken a beating. But in
the long term, Sam Jones, president of All
Season Financial Advisors, which has $100
million in assets under management,
thinks that stocks of such companies as
First Solar Inc. (FSLR) and SunPower Corp.
(SPWR) are good bets.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
He also is looking at stocks of technology
companies that enable renewable energy,
such as Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO).
Kevin Landis, the portfolio manager of
Firsthand Capital Management Inc.’s
Alternative Energy Fund (ALTEX), thinks
that as the costs of gas and oil rise as a
result of increased regulation, there will
be a runup in the battery-operated car
sector.
One stock he likes is A123 Systems Inc.
(AONE), which produces high-powered
ion batteries for cars.
“The cost of producing energy from coal
and oil will go up, and therefore, the value
of any form of energy goes up,” Mr. Landis
said.
Bruce Jenkyn-Jones, managing director
at Impax Asset Management Group PLC
and co-manager of Pax World Management
LLC’s Global Green Fund (PGRNX), also
likes companies involved with the cleanup
of the spill.
“I think the water treatment and pollution
control sector is compelling, specifically
companies that are treating and recycling
the oil,” he said.
Mr. Jenkyn-Jones likes Clean Harbors Inc.
(CLH), which handles hazardous waste,
and Nalco Holding Co. (NLC), which
conducts water treatment. He also likes
companies involved with environmental
testing, such as Thermo Fisher Scientific
Inc. (TMO), and water pumping, such as
Idex Corp. (IEX) and Pentair Inc. (PNR).
“In the short term, we are looking for
companies that could benefit in the next
quarter,” Mr. Jenkyn-Jones said.
In the longer term, however, he thinks
that environmental consultants are a good
investment.
“One can speculate that regulation will
tighten around offshore drilling in general
and create opportunities for the
environment age,” Mr. Jenkyn-Jones
said.
Some hedge fund managers are discussing
which company stocks to short in the
wake of the oil spill.
For example, one hedge fund manager,
who asked not to be identified, mentioned
the possibility of shorting stocks of local
banks in the gulf region because they do
a lot of commercial loans, and clearly,
many businesses will be hurt, he said.
The BP spill and the moratorium on deep-
water drilling will benefit onshore and
shallow-water drilling, said Craig Hodges,
president of Hodges Capital Management
Inc. and co-portfolio manager of the $450
million Hodges Fund (HDPMX) and $40
million Hodges Small Cap Fund
(HDPSX).
He likes Atwood Oceanics Inc. (ATW) and
Rowan Companies Inc., (RDC), both of
which participate in shallow-water
drilling.
“Their business may get strong- er,” Mr.
Hodges said.
He even thinks that Transocean Ltd. (RIG),
which owned and operated the rig that
exploded April 20, is a good investment.
Last week, Transocean’s stock hit an
18-month low, closing the week at TK,
down TK% since April 20.
“We like Transocean,” Mr. Hodges said.
“They have gotten hit harder than BP, but
BP is responsible, and they are the ones
who are going to be paying for this.”
Transocean was a top holding for The
Hodges Fund as of May 31.
Keeping the faith
Although most investors are steering clear
of BP, MMA Praxis Mutual Funds group is
maintaining its investment.
The faith-based fund group, which is part
of Mennonite Mutual Aid Inc., prides itself
on being a socially conscious investment
firm and doesn’t think that investing in
BP goes against its philosophy, said Mark
Regier, director of stewardship investing
at MMA.
As of April 30, the MMA Praxis International
Fund (MPIAX) had a 1.9% weighting in
shares of BP.
“There are some financial reasons for not
selling,” Mr. Regier said.
Shares of BP plummeted to a 15- month
low last week. The stock closed at TK Friday,
down TK% since April 20.
MMA also wants to give BP some time to
see how it handles the oil spill, Mr. Regier
said.
“I think we will be concerned in four to
six months if we don’t know what
happened,” he said.
“When it comes to a crisis like this, there
is a tendency to react to the implications,
but we want to know what the problem
was, what the solution will be — and see
what their response is to fixing every-
thing.”
15 June-July 2010

Details of new
Japanese ‘helicopter
destroyer’
Rumors that the Japan Maritime Self-
Defense Force’s third “aircraft carrying
destroyer”would mark a major improvement
in size and capability over the Hyuga class
ships now entering service have been
confirmed.
The new 22DDH will be 248 meters long
and 39 meters in beam, and displace more
than 24,000 tons. This makes her almost
50 percent larger than the Hyuga class
and places an unbearable semantic strain
on the use of the term “destroyer” to
describe these ships. To put the size of
the ship into context, she is comparable
with a World War II Essex-class fleet
carrier.
Illustrations of the 22DDH show her to be
a full-fledged helicopter carrier with no
real destroyer characteristics. The
superstructure is very similar to that of
the Hyuga class with the difference that
the 01 deck is extended forward, probably
to accommodate a vertical launch silo for
air defense missiles. The point defenses
of the new ships are more than doubled,
with three Phalanx Mk 15 mountings and
two RAM launchers replacing the pair of
Phalanx mounts on the older ship.
Significantly, while one of the Phalanx
mounts on the Hyuga is situated forward
on the flight deck, and thus obstructs
fixed-wing operations, the 22DDH has all
of its mounts located on sponsons clear
of the flight deck itself.
The flight deck layout on the 22DDH differs
significantly from that of the Hyuga class.
One of the lifts has been moved from the
centerline to the deck-edge position. The
added width of the flight deck has been
used to shift the axis of air operations
clear of the remaining centerline elevator.
The number of munitions elevators
feeding the flight deck has been increased
from two to four.
A vertical launch silo built into the rear of
the flight deck on the Hyuga has been
removed, once again reducing obstructions
to flight operations. Flight deck operations
capacity has been increased from two to
seven helicopters.
Japanese accounts suggest that one of
the reasons for the drastic increase in size
of the 22DDH design is a planned shift to
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Aerospace and Defence
the V-22 Osprey as the primary air group
element for these ships. It is not clear
whether these would be replacements
for or supplemental to the SH-60Ks that
equip the Hyuga class. These accounts
also make it clear that the F-35B short
takeoff and vertical landing variant of the
Joint Strike Fighter is seen as a key system
for these ships. Apparently, provision for
the operation of UAVs is being included
within the design.
Pentagon contract
announcement
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is
pleased to announce the award of advisory
and assistance services contracts to
– ALATEC, Inc., Huntsville, Ala.
(HQ0147-10-D-0002);
– Computer Sciences Corporation,
Huntsville, Ala. (HQ0147-10-D-0003);
and
– Tetra Tech-EMC, Camarillo, Calif.
(HQ0147-10-D-0004).
Each firm is being awarded an indefinite-
delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to
provide advisory and assistance services
to the Chief of Staff Directorate (DS)
MDA.
The contractors will assist DS in providing
agency operations support services for
the Ballistic Missile Defense System.
This procurement is managed by the
Missile Defense Agency Engineering and
Support Services Program Office. This
office is responsible for centrally managing
the acquisition of advisory and assistance
services for the agency.
These contracts are being competitively
awarded under the full and open
(unrestricted) Request for Proposal HQ0147-
09-R-0002. Each contract has a not-to-
exceed ordering ceiling of $270,462,000.
The companies will have the opportunity
to bid on each individual task order.
Work under these contracts will be
performed in Huntsville, Ala. and other
MDA locations. The performance period
is through June 2015. Obligations will be
made by task orders using Research,
Development, Test and Evaluation
funds.
Defence Secretary sets
out his priorities
Secretary of State for Defence, Dr Liam
Fox, has written a message to all military
and civilian personnel setting out his
objectives, priorities and intent for how
policy will be translated into action in the
months ahead.
Dr Fox’s full message to all military and
civilian staff follows:
“Following discussions with my MOD
ministerial colleagues, PUS [Permanent
Under Secretary], CDS [Chief of the
Defence Staff ], and other members of my
top team, I have agreed the following
objectives and priorities for the remainder
of 2010.
“Afghanistan will remain the top priority.
Our people in theatre must get the best
possible support. Counter-insurgency
needs strategic patience but by the end
of the year I expect that we can show
significant progress with the mission,
building on previous achievements,
consolidating ISAF’s hold in central
Helmand, and accelerating the training
of the Afghan security forces that is already
ahead of target.
“Achieving success in Afghanistan must
not prevent us from conducting our other
operational commitments effectively or
from preparing to meet other contingencies,
particularly in the Middle East. I shall be
conducting a thorough stocktake of our
contingency plans in the months ahead.
“The focus for many of us in the next six
months, and my second priority, will be
on conducting a cross-Government,
policy-led, resource-informed Strategic
Defence and Security Review [SDSR]. I am
determined that this exercise will bring
defence policy, plans, commitments and
resources into balance, and produce over
time a transformative change to British
Defence. This will not be a salami-slicing
review but one which provides coherent
long-term policy direction and takes the
tough choices required to produce the
Armed Forces and wider defence
capabilities the country will need in the
decades ahead.
“One reason why tough choices are
needed is that the Government has
inherited a forward defence programme
that is simply unaffordable against likely
future resources. We need to break out of
16 June-July 2010
the culture by which key equipment
programmes are regularly delayed for
affordability reasons. I have set in hand
work to review all the major equipment
and support contracts to ensure the future
programme is coherent with future
defence needs and can be afforded.
“At the heart of the SDSR will be a thorough
examination of our force structure, looking
at the overall shape, size and role of Armed
Forces personnel and MOD civil servants,
including the Reserve Forces. I am,
however, determined that the Armed
Forces and the MOD Civil Service should
continue to employ high quality people.
We will need to ensure we motivate the
people who will continue to provide the
core of defence capability. In recognition
of the demands the country places on our
Service personnel, I will also look to
improve the package of welfare and
healthcare for those who serve, particularly
in the area of mental health, and to make
improvements to accommodation
wherever possible within budgetary
constraints.
“In every aspect of Defence, and particularly
in the support area, I shall be looking to
bear down on costs, seeking improved
value for money and greater efficiency
wherever possible. As part of this work I
intend to follow through on the com-
mitment in the Coalition Agreement to
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
reduce the MOD’s running costs by 25 per
cent. This will require some tough decisions
with impact in many areas of the
Department.
“The SDSR will inevitably impact on how
Defence is structured and organised. I
intend to establish a Defence Reform Unit
to help plan and implement these changes.
Mindful of the scale of other challenges,
this work will proceed on a separate track
with a view to completion by this time
next year, though early high level findings
may have to be woven into the SDSR.
“Internationally, the core of UK security
must remain NATO, which should be our
instrument of first choice for collective
security challenges. The US will be our
major partner but we will also step up
bilateral co-operation with France and
other partners, and revitalise a broad
programme of defence diplomacy. I also
intend to revitalise our approach to
defence exports. This has the potential to
both increase UK influence and safeguard
UK defence jobs. Within NATO, I shall be
arguing the case for accelerating the
process of reform, giving the alliance a
more robust new strategic concept, and
taking a more strategic approach to
European burden-sharing.
“Finally, I expect also to reset the MOD’s
relationship with the defence industry to
reflect our changed economic circumstances
and push ahead with the process of
acquisition reform. More than ever the
focus will in future be on getting the Armed
Forces the equipment they need when
they need it, at a price we can afford. To
that end I intend to update and improve
the Defence Industrial Strategy.
“The year ahead promises to be very
challenging for all of us. The operational
tempo looks set to stay high and there is
a real prospect of having to deal with
additional contingencies. We will need to
complete the SDSR in less than half the
time it took to conduct the last major
defence review. And the global and
national financial situation provides a
stark backdrop.
“But I hope that, like me, you also regard
the period ahead as an opportunity to put
Britain’s defence on a stronger, more stable
footing. You will all have the opportunity
to contribute to this programme of change.
My ministerial team and I have been greatly
impressed with the professionalism and
frankness with which we have been
welcomed into the MOD, and find the
bravery, dedication and capability of our
personnel to be genuinely inspiring. What
you do matters to every man, woman and
child in the United Kingdom.
“I look forward to working with you in the
period ahead.”
17 June-July 2010
 Aerospace and Defence
Emirates, the Dubai-based international
Emirates orders 32 airline, placed an order with Airbus for an
additional 32 A380 aircraft, taking the
Airbus A380 Super total firm order for the iconic flagship of
the 21st century to 90 super-jumbos.
Jumbos valued at
The order for the additional aircraft has a
US$ 11.5B; adds to list price of US$ 11.5 billion (AED 42.2).
The agreement was signed today during
58 previously ordered a ceremony at the Berlin Air Show by His
Highness (H.H.) Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed
A380 aircraft Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Executive, Emirates Airline and Group and
Tom Enders, Airbus President and CEO,
which was witnessed by German
Chancellor Angela Merkel and other
dignitaries.
“This latest order, adding to 58 A380s
previously ordered, affirms Emirates’
strategy to become a world leading carrier
and to further establish Dubai as a central
gateway to worldwide air travel. The A380
is our flagship in terms of passenger
comfort, innovation, operating and
18 June-July 2010
environmental efficiency and revenue
generation,” said H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin
Saeed Al-Maktoum.“Our latest commitment
signals Emirates’ confidence in the growth
to come in a thriving aviation sector as we
build our fleet for tomorrow,” he added.
“Emirates supported the development of
the A380 from the earliest days, a project
employing tens of thousands of Europe’s
best people and today’s increased order,
is the best endorsement I can imagine.
On behalf of all of us at Airbus, we thank
Emirates for their support. The A380 is
indeed a remarkable eco-efficient aircraft,
a profit generator for airlines and a great
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
flying experience for passengers,” said
Tom Enders.
Emirates, the second-largest airline in the
world in available seat-kilometres, is on
track to become one of the largest airlines
in the world. In addition to the orders
placed today, Emirates has 48 Airbus 380s,
70 Airbus 350s, 18 Boeing 777-300s and
7 Boeing air freighters on order totaling
143 wide-body aircraft worth more than
$US 48 billion.
In a year where the aviation industry was
rocked by the economic downturn,
Emirates Airline recently reported its 22nd
year of profit, up 416 percent to close at
US$ 964 million (AED 3.5 billion) over its
2008-09 profits of US$ 187 million (AED
686 million).
From the delivery of its first A380 in July
2008, to receiving it 10th A380 on 7th
June 2010 from the Airbus plant in
Hamburg, Emirates is now serving eight
international destinations with the super-
jumbo aircraft including London Heathrow,
Toronto, Paris, Jeddah, Bangkok, Seoul,
Sydney and Auckland.
The airline will start A380 services to
Beijing from 1st August, Manchester from
1st September and will return service to
New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) airport
on 1st October.
Emirates’ looks forward to expanding the
list of destinations at more than 100
airports around the world as A380s
become ready.
19 June-July 2010
BP’s Ever-Growing On April 20, less than a month
after President Barack Obama
announced a sweeping new
federal program to promote offshore oil and gas development in

Oil Spill the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, the U.S. was hit with
what has become the biggest oil spill in its history.

On that Tuesday night, 52 miles offshore
of Louisiana in nearly 5,000 feet of water,
BP’s Deepwater Horizon exploratory
drilling rig was closing down its operations.
After months of drilling, it had reached a
reservoir 15,000 feet beneath the seafloor,
found oil and gas, and was in the process
of capping the borehole with cement,
sealing it for later commercial production,
when a massive blast rocked the rig.
The exact cause of the blowout, fire, and
explosion will be determined in the
months ahead, but government and
industry experts speculate that a cap of
cement and drilling mud—used to seal
the exploratory well—gave way to the
pressure of oil and gas pushing up from
the reservoir. The high-pressured oil and
gas then blasted to the ocean surface,
ignited, set the rig ablaze, and killed 11
workers.
Resting on the ocean floor, a key last-ditch
safety device—the four-story-high
blowout preventer—should have kicked
in, pinching and closing the well. But when
it failed to crush and block the borehole,
BP, President Obama, and the nation could
only stand by and watch the disaster
unfold.
Just weeks earlier, on March 31, Obama
had laid out his plan to expand offshore
oil and gas exploration and development.
He stressed the importance of balancing
“the need to harness domestic energy
resources and the need to protect
America’s natural resources,” adding that
he and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar “will
employ new technologies that reduce the
impact of oil exploration. We’ll protect
areas that are vital to tourism, the
environment, and our national security.
And we’ll be guided not by political
ideology, but by scientific evidence.”
Obama’s announcement surprised some
of his environmental supporters, as well
as elected officials from several coastal
states, but the President appeared
comfortable in the knowledge that the

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 20 June-July 2010

U.S. had not had a major oil rig spill in the
Gulf of Mexico, despite increasingly
technologically complex drilling operations
at record depths of a mile or more beneath
the surface. Now, two-and-a-half-months
later, the BP oil rig accident has set another
record of sorts as the largest oil spill in
U.S. history at more than 20 million gal,
far outstripping the 11 million gal of the
1989 Exxon Valdez off the coast of Alaska
and the 4.3 million gal of the 1969 Santa
Barbara spill off California’s coast.
The spill may soon rank as the world’s
biggest offshore blowout, surpassing the
1979 Ixtoc I rig spill in the southern Gulf
of Mexico. That blowout, which released
138 million gal over nine months, also
occurred when the blowout preventer
failed during a well-sealing operation.
Eventually, Mexican-government-run oil
firm Pemex, the rig’s owner, drilled relief
wells and sealed the borehole, a fate
increasingly likely for Deepwater
Horizon.
BP’s spill reveals shortcomings with the
government’s and industry’s ability to
plan for or control a deepwater leak, clean
up the aftermath, and account for its
environmental impact. Indeed, in
testimony before Congress, well owner
BP and drilling rig owner and operator
Transocean repeatedly explain that they
are learning more about oil spills through
this tragedy.
The government has appeared unable to
stop the flow or clean up the mess. Obama
has had to rely on BP to even determine
the size of the leak, estimates of which
were far from accurate. BP estimated the
rate at 1,000 to 5,000 barrels per day. Now,
government scientists say the flow is
12,000 to 19,000 bbl per day, or 500,000
to 800,000 gal per day.
Yet Obama continues to support oil
exploration and production, he explained
at a press briefing on May 27. “Where I
was wrong was in my belief that the oil
companies had their act together when
it came to worst-case scenarios.”
As it continues unabated, the deepwater
spill in the Gulf has exposed critical gaps
in our knowledge of oil-spill science. Many
questions have surfaced about the spill’s
long-term effects under the sea, on the
surface, and on the shore. Experts’ most
pressing questions and concerns focus
on possible underwater plumes of oil and
the fate of small oil droplets created by
chemical dispersants.
In the past month, several independent
research teams have found evidence of
underwater oil plumes. On May 12,
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
scientists from the University of Mississippi
and the University of Southern Mississippi
aboard the Pelican research vessel
reported the first signs of one—a six-mile-
wide plume about 28 miles southwest of
the wellhead and floating between 3,200
and 4,500 feet below the surface. More
recently, a University of South Florida
(USF) team detected what could be an
even larger underwater plume about 42
miles northeast of the wellhead. Both
teams mapped these plumes using
fluorometers to detect the fluorescence
signatures of the oil’s aromatic compounds,
along with either sonar or light-scattering
instruments to detect oil droplets floating
in the water.
However, the National Oceanic &
Atmospheric Administration has remained
cautious about calling these teams’
observations underwater oil plumes and
attributing the possible plumes to the
spill. In a June 2 telephone press
conference, NOAA Administrator Jane
Lubchenco said that the agency wanted
to wait for more definitive gas
chromatography and mass spectrometry
data on water samples collected by the
cruises—along with others gathered by
NOAA’s own research vessels—before
weighing in.
But a University of Georgia researcher,
Samantha Joye, who worked with the
Pelican team and has now returned to the
Gulf on another expedition, reported on
her blog that her team had collected water
samples north of the wellhead that when
filtered were shown to contain oil. These
observations lend some credibility to the
underwater plume hypothesis, says
chemist Jeffrey Scott of the Washington,
D.C.-based environmental group Oceana.
And on June 8, the South Florida
researchers and NOAA officials announced
that GC/MS analysis of samples from the
USF expedition indicates oil at
concentrations of about 0.5 ppm. But they
could not yet confirm whether the oil had
come from the spill.
Early media reports attributed the possible
plumes to BP’s underwater injection of
chemical dispersants at the source of the
leak. Dispersants are mixtures of solvents
and surfactants that break up oil into small
droplets, which stay in the water column
longer than larger droplets. The underwater
dispersant method had never been tried
before this spill. Previously, planes had
sprayed dispersants onto oil slicks to force
the oil to sink below the surface so it was
less likely to wash ashore and impact
coastal environments. Gulf cleanup crews
have also used this standard dispersant
method.
Experts say that although dispersants
probably enhance these plumes, the
hovering underwater oil clouds could be
caused by the spill itself. “When the Pelican
showed those mile-long oil plumes, I
wasn’t surprised by that, because you’re
going to get natural dispersion,” says
aquatic toxicologist Mr. Mitchelmore of
the University of Maryland’s Center for
Environmental Science.
The more time oil spends in the water
column, the greater the amount of the
oil’s more soluble—and more toxic—
compounds can dissolve into the
ocean.
A stalled plume eventually breaks up and
spreads out through the water column.
A plume that reaches upwelling areas,
such as the De Soto Canyon 80 miles
northeast of the wellhead, could spread
oil even farther, because these regions
act like conveyor belts that pull water and
nutrients from deep waters to the surface.
But any oil that doesn’t degrade or dissolve
into the water column will eventually
reach the surface.
To combat these surface slicks, BP has
sprayed about 780,000 gal of chemical
dispersants as of June 7 in an attempt to
keep oil from hitting the Gulf Coast.
Environmental groups and some scientists
have raised concerns about this
unprecedented rate of dispersant use. In
the 1979 Ixtoc I blowout spill, crews sprayed
about 2.5 million gal of dispersants onto
oil slicks, but over a nine-month period.
“Where I was wrong was in my belief that
the oil companies had their act together
when it came to worst-case scenarios.”
In particular, observers have pointed to
the toxicities of BP’s dispersant choices,
Corexit 9500 and Corexit 9527, as troubling.
On May 20, the Environmental Protection
Agency ordered BP to search for a less
toxic alternative.
Observers and EPA also demanded that
BP disclose the chemical makeup of the
dispersants. But the company initially
refused, claiming that the compositions
were the proprietary information of Nalco,
which manufactures the Corexit line.
But most experts worry little about
Corexit’s toxicity. “Compared to the toxicity
of the oil, the incremental increase in
toxicity of the dispersant itself is pretty
negligible,” Oceana’s Short says.
The bigger environmental concern,
experts say, is therefore not the dispersants
themselves but what the chemicals do to
the oil. By itself, oil is more toxic than
dispersants alone, but less so than
21 June-July 2010

dispersed oil. In the Corexit toxicity
experiments, oil alone had an LC50 of
10.72 ppm. When spill response teams
approve dispersant use, they assume that
the vast water column will dilute the
dispersed oil and mitigate its increased
toxicity.
Many of the region’s important organisms,
such as blue fin tuna and shrimp, use the
wetlands at some point in their lifetime.
Out in the Gulf’s waters, adults breed
during the late spring and early summer.
Their eggs then float to shore and the
larvae grow in the wetlands, protected
from predators.
In a June 4 report of a meeting sponsored
by the UNH research center, oil-spill
experts recommended continued use of
dispersants, but suggested that response
teams should establish ecological
assessment teams to reevaluate the trade-
off decision on the basis of data of
dispersed oil-plume locations and
concentrations.
But holes in the scientific literature hinder
proper evaluation of the environmental
trade-offs between wetlands and water
column when massive amounts of
dispersants enter the picture, other experts
say. Some scientists believe that they can’t
properly estimate the harm that this spill’s
load of dispersed oil will cause the water
column, because they lack sufficient and
fundamental data on how dispersants
affect oil’s fate, what creatures live in
deepwater ecosystems, how laboratory
toxicity tests translate to actual conditions
in the ocean, and how oil affects organisms
over the long term.
One source of confusion stems from the
methods used to measure oil
biodegredation. Studies often monitor
drops in oxygen levels as a proxy for
microbial activity, because microbes
consume oxygen while they digest oil.
Researchers question whether the lower
oxygen levels could also signal that the
microbes are digesting the dispersants’
surfactant molecules instead of oil
compounds. “If you look at structures of
the surfactant molecules that are known,
there are a lot of very edible pieces on
there from a microbial perspective,”
Valentine says.
As contradictory biodegradation results
hinder the ability of scientists to model
dispersed oil’s fate, missing pieces in
toxicity data make it difficult to predict
the spill’s environmental impact.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
BP’s Ever-Growing Oil Spill
First, the Gulf spill is exposing a relatively
unstudied ecosystem—the deep ocean—
to oil. Although biologists have studied
organisms that live in the Gulf’s wetlands
and those that spawn in the water column,
they have almost no data on the organisms
that live at depths around the leaking
wellhead. Also, aquatic toxicologist
Mitchelmore says, it’s unclear how many
species living near the ocean’s surface
dive down to these depths to feed.
“Ultimately, we don’t know what’s even
down there to ascertain risks,” Mitchelmore
says. “It is just one huge black box.”
Even the toxicity data scientists have for
species that live near the ocean’s surface
have question marks.
When organisms absorb or even eat small
amounts of oil over a period of time, their
cells divert energy from growth and
reproduction to defending themselves
from the toxic oil. As a result, later in these
organism’s life cycles, they develop growth
defects that limit their viability. Also
because oil’s toxic aromatic compounds
act like narcotics or anesthetics, nonlethal
doses can slow fish and disrupt their ability
to respond to predators or to catch prey.
“It’s a more subtle way of killing something,”
Mitchelmore says of chronic toxicity.
The end results of chronic toxicity in the
Gulf will probably take years to decades
for scientists to fully appreciate, Mitchelmore
says. But early signs may appear in the
yields from next year’s fisheries, she
adds.
All of these now-glaring scientific
unknowns have led experts to call for
more oil-spill research to better prepare
us for the next megaspill.
“This is one big ongoing experiment,”
Mitchelmore says. “We’re going to be
learning a lot from this spill, and that’s
wrong. We need basic information ahead
of time.”
More research will become increasingly
important as oil exploration continues into
unstudied ecosystems, such as ultra-deep
water and the Arctic, Kinner and McKinney
say. Understanding how oil behaves and
what organisms could be affected in these
new areas will be crucial.
Stakeholders from industry to regulators
did not collect enough of this data before
moving from continental-shelf drilling to
deepwater drilling, McKinney says. Instead,
they relied too much on what the
community had learned from spills on the
continental shelf and applied it to the
deep.
“That was inappropriate,” McKinney says.
“There are huge differences, and we did
not invest in an adequate risk assessment
to make sure that we were balancing the
benefits from the production against the
potential environmental harm. And we’re
learning that harm the hard way now.”
Obama underscored this lack of pre-
paration for the worst and reliance on the
past to predict the future at his late-May
briefing. “The fact that oil companies now
have to go a mile underwater and then
drill another 3 miles below that in order
to hit oil tells us something about the
direction of the oil industry,” he said.
“Extraction is more expensive, and it is
going to be inherently more risky.”
The President then announced a series of
potentially sweeping reforms within the
Minerals Management Service, the part
of the Department of Interior that oversees
offshore oil and gas drilling and production
in federal waters. Only hours before the
briefing, Salazar had forced MMS head S.
Elizabeth Birnbaum to resign.
Among reforms announced by the
President and Salazar were new, tougher
operating standards for offshore energy
companies and a six-month moratorium
on new deepwater drilling.The requirements
were based on recommendations of a
federal agency report, the so-called 30-day
report, ordered by President Obama and
completed on May 27.
The moratorium stops exploratory drilling
in water deeper than 500 feet, half the
depth normally considered to be
“deepwater.” Consequently, 33 permitted
exploratory wells currently being drilled
in the deepwater in the Gulf of Mexico
must halt drilling at the first safe stopping
point, Salazar explained.
But operating production facilities will be
allowed to keep pumping, Salazar said.
That means that some 3,500 production
rigs and facilities operating in federal Gulf
waters and 46 deepwater production rigs
will keep working. Each rig can support
multiple wells, so the actual number of
operating wells is about 30,000, according
to MMS budget documents.
MMS figures show that the deepwater
wells are highly productive. Indeed, the
recent 30-day report says wells drilled at
those greater and technologically complex
22 June-July 2010
depths in the Gulf of Mexico produce 80%
of U.S. offshore oil and 45% of U.S. offshore
gas.
Salazar and MMS documents say only 55
federal inspectors are working in the Gulf,
and they are expected to oversee drilling
and production on 3,500 rigs and platforms.
Salazar has announced his intention to
increase by 10% the total number of MMS
inspectors, currently 62, charged with the
herculean task of overseeing operations
on all the drilling rigs and production
platforms operating in all waters in the
Gulf, Pacific, and Alaska.
The exploratory moratorium will stay in
place, Salazar said, until a commission
created by Obama to investigate the BP
oil spill has completed its review, which
is due in six months. Much will turn on
what this commission finds. Its charge is
to examine the root cause of the accident
and spill and make recommendations to
improve federal laws, regulations, and
industry offshore practices. The seven-
member panel will be led by former EPA
administrator William K. Reilly and former
Florida Sen. Robert Graham. It is but one
of a host of bodies examining the blowout,
including BP, MMS, and the National
Academy of Engineering.
Along with the exploratory drilling
moratorium, Salazar canceled future lease
sales in the Gulf of Mexico and a proposed
lease sale off the coast of Virginia. Salazar
also suspended proposed exploratory
drilling in the Arctic region, which is
expected to figure big in the future of
international offshore oil production.
Salazar said the Administration will take
a “cautious approach” in the Arctic and, in
light of BP’s failure to control and clean
up the Gulf spill, postponed Shell’s
proposal to drill up to five exploration
wells in the Arctic this summer in the
Chukchi and Beaufort Seas.
The 30-day report pointed to two primary
failures in the drilling process that may
have led to the BP disaster: the “loss of
well control” and the failure of the blowout
preventer. BP’s blowout preventer had
been modified to speed the drilling
process, according to several reports.
Hence, Salazar ordered that blowout
preventer equipment on all floating
drilling rigs in the outer continental shelf
must be reinspected and recertified to
ensure that the devices will operate as
originally designed and that any
modifications have not compromised
design or operation. Operators must also
provide independent verification that the
recertified blowout preventer will operate
properly.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Salazar also announced his intention to
separate MMS into three parts: an office
for developing energy sources including
wind and renewable energy, in addition
to oil and gas; a bureau for regulatory
enforcement; and an office to collect
revenues from the use of federal lands by
private companies. Last year, MMS
collected $13 billion from oil companies
producing in federal waters.
This conflict in oil and gas promotion,
collecting revenues, and regulation has
been a longtime problem for MMS but
one that the Interior Department
acknowledged only recently.
Last month, a report by the Department
of Interior’s Office of Inspector General
found a busy revolving door between
MMS inspectors and the oil rig operators
and managers MMS is to regulate.
Triggering the investigations were
anonymous allegations of inspectors
accepting gifts, including dinners, tickets
for and transportation to sporting events,
and hunting and fishing trips. The
allegations also include falsification of
inspection reports.
The report examined one company in
particular, Island Operating, and its
relationship with MMS’s Lake Charles
District Office, in Louisiana.
It found ample examples of company-paid
social activities and MMS inspectors
accepting industry jobs. However, the
MMS district manager noted that the MMS
inspectors and company representatives
“are all oil industry,” are from the same
part of the country, and grew up in the
same towns.
“Almost all of our inspectors have worked
for oil companies out on these same
platforms,” the district manager said.
“They’ve been with these people since
they were kids.”
Also last month, Salazar announced he
would request appropriations to more
than double MMS’s current budget for oil
rig inspectors of $23 million to $52 million.
He also announced he would seek
legislation to eliminate a congressionally
mandated provision requiring MMS to
process all industry applications for
exploration within 30 days. This narrow
time window forces MMS to process
applications without completing an
adequate environmental review, which
proved to be the case with the BP
explosion. He proposed tripling the
amount of time to 90 days.
Nearly all the reforms require congressional
approval through appropriations and in
some cases legislation. A hard road lies
ahead. Congress is sharply split, with some
members having deep and longtime ties
to the oil and natural gas industry and the
jobs and revenues they have provided.
As Congress works through drilling
reforms, the Administration and BP are
working to stop the flow of oil and clean
up the oil that’s already leaked. Until the
relief wells are ready, which won’t be
until August, effor ts such as the
containment cap lowered over the
leaking well early this month are being
employed to capture some of the oil and
gas billowing from the ocean floor. As
for the oil plumes and slicks in the ocean
and washing up on Gulf shores, chemical
dispersants will continue to play a role
in this cleanup.
For more information and the whole
article visit: http://pubs.acs.org/
23 June-July 2010

It may be one of Europe’s more compact
countries, but sharing its borders with
France, the Netherlands, Germany and
Luxembourg, Belgium is the very heart
of North-West Europe. Therefore, when
it comes to developments in Europe to
connect and correlate electricity systems
across the region, Belgian transmissi-
on system operator Elia is leading the
way. Chief Transmission Officer Mr Roel
Goethals talks to Gabrielle Brown about
Elia’s pioneering efforts to unite and
reinforce the grids of Europe.
Elia is responsible for the transmission of
Belgium’s electricity and owns all the
country’s 150–380kV grid and almost all
of its 30–70kV grid infrastructure. Its prime
responsibilities are threefold: first, to
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ELIA
Europe’s Electric Hub
develop and maintain the system’s
infrastructure; second, to ensure there is
a balance between electricity generation
and consumption; and third to act as the
market facilitator – i.e. to take measures
to improve the functioning of the
electricity market.
Since 19 May 2010, Elia has also owned a
60% stake in one of the four German
transmission system operators, 50Hertz
Transmission. This acquisition is in line
with Elia’s strategy of contributing to the
creation of a regional electricity market
in Central Western Europe (Benelux, France
and Germany). It also represents a major
step to ensure the security of supply to a
diverse customer base with a broad and
green ‘energy mix’.
Mr Goethals explains that his role is
primarily focused on achieving that crucial
balance between supply and demand:
“My responsibility is to the transmission
department and overseeing the real-time
operation of the grid via the regional and
national control centres. This involves
managing our system services, but my
overall objective is to ensure the grid is
balanced.”
New market
mechanisms
As is the situation for transmission system
operators ( TSOs) across Europe,
responsibilities towards the market side
24 June-July 2010
of the business have become more
significant since the market’s deregulation
a decade ago. Therefore Mr Goethals’s role
will perhaps be more strategic than in
previous years. “In the context of the
deregulation of the electricity market our
responsibilities have evolved from being
responsible for the maintenance and
development of the grid to being the
market facilitator.”
“Concerning market mechanisms, we were
involved in the creation of the BELPEX
stock exchange, where in effect three
different stock exchanges have created a
single platform to which customers have
transparent access.”This is realised through
a ‘trilateral coupling’ of Belgium’s power
exchange with the French (Powernext)
and Dutch (APX) power exchanges. This
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
market coupling means that buyers and
sellers on the exchange automatically
benefit from cross-border exchanges:
cheaper electricity generation in one
country can meet demand and reduce
prices in another. Market coupling will be
extended to the Central West European
and Nordic markets in autumn 2010.
Leading ENTSO-E and
CORESO
Significantly, as this market expands
beyond Belgium, and because the country’s
grid forms a key connection between
France, Europe’s largest electricity exporter,
and the markets of Northern Europe, Elia’s
scope has broadened immeasurably.
“Although we are a comparatively small
TSO and a small countr y, Elia is
geographically at the centre of Europe so
we are very much influenced by what is
happening with the flows around us. We
are one of the most interconnected
countries in Europe and therefore we have
to be at the forefront of the developments
in the European market. We have evolved
from a nationally operational company to
one that is acting in a broader context.”
Not only is Elia physically at the centre of
Europe’s electricity system but also the
organisation’s CEO Daniel Dobbeni is
President of the European Network of
Ttransmission System Operators for
Electricity (ENTSO-E). In this role Mr
Dobbeni plays a hugely significant part
25 June-July 2010

in coordinating all TSOs throughout
Europe in their mission to achieve a
seamless, pan-European electricity
market.
Another pioneering organisation with Elia
at the helm is CORESO, founded in
February 2009 by Elia and the French TSO,
RTE and later joined by NGET, the British
TSO, CORESO is the first regional technical
coordination centre in Europe, providing
non-stop integrated forecasts relating to
grid security to national control centres.
CORESO signalled the first step towards
operational cooperation between TSOs
in Europe whose collaboration will be key
to managing cross-border electricity flows
and developments to the infrastructure
that will prove essential to accommodating
power from renewable sources. “We
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ELIA
Europe’s Electric Hub
monitor the grids 24 hours a day, seven
days a week. You can compare CORESO
to an air-traffic control tower,” says Mr
Goethals.
Elia in its work with CORESO is continually
looking at methods to better monitor the
grid’s capacity and its variations. Their
intention is to look at the genuine, as
opposed to the theoretical, capacity on a
particular section of the grid at any one
time. Mr Goethals explains, “For instance,
if there is wind or sun then the capacity
of the overhead line can change – it varies
according to temperature. Therefore we
are developing tools and processes that
can optimise capacity, and this will help
us to maintain the grid’s security, even
with the increase of the less-controllable
renewable power.” This knowledge-
harvesting and sharing exercise will allow
TSOs to build up an accurate picture of
the grid’s capacity and will then enable
them to keep the ever-changing flows
under control. This is particularly relevant
to projects relating to smart grids, where
new technology will be needed to control
the power in-feed from wind farms in order
to ensure energy is bought, sold, stored
and supplied in the most efficient way.
Research and
development is key
Evidently, Elia is a pioneer when it comes
to bringing TSOs together to meet Europe-
wide operational and strategic challenges.
26 June-July 2010
However, the integration of Europe’s
electricity systems in terms of the technical
developments needed in order to ensure
that systems can accommodate the
complex oscillations of renewably sourced
power remains as one of the more
demanding tasks. “On the technical side
we are facing developments that pose
major challenges. Adopting our systems
to cope with renewable energy sources
is one such challenge, where the flow of
power is less controllable and intermittent.
In north Germany you’re looking at
25.000 MW of power which can vary
according to the speed of the wind. In a
few seconds there can be a huge change
and this influences the flow here through
Belgium. We have to invest a lot in order
to be able to transport this renewable
energy,” explains Mr Goethals.
“We’re also looking at developing high-
performance power lines, so that with the
same sections of cables you can transport
more energy.” With the European Union’s
goal of cutting energy consumption by
20% by 2020, together with reducing CO2
emissions by 20% and generating 20% of
the energy it consumes from renewable
sources, Mr Goethals stresses that projects
are, “still significantly in need of
considerable research and development.
There are lots of ideas and lots of new
technologies but the next step is to see
how to implement these in an EU context.
This is where we need to do more R&D.”
I asked Mr Goethals to sum up how Elia
had changed over the last ten years. “We
have gone from being focused on simply
‘keeping the lights on’ to now having a
mission to develop the European electricity
market in a reliable, sustainable and
efficient way.” In short, from small
beginnings come great things. With Elia
confidently guiding operational, market
and R&D projects, Europe appears
favourably poised to meet its 2020
objectives.

VERBRAEKEN CONSTRUCTION Ltd.

Directional drilling, excavating and paving work, placing of cables and pipelines for
gas, water and electricity, electrical, high-voltage and fiber optic cables, public
lighting… no contract has yet secrets for Verbraeken Construction Ltd. With our 9
subsidiaries we grew into an international group with 670 employees and are still in
full expansion.

Enjoy the professional work conducted by experts with modern equipment and
years of expertise. This gives you the best that’s currently available on the market.
Proof? Our market leadership.
www.verbraekenconstructionnv.eu

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 27 June-July 2010

 RWE GROUP
High Energy

The biomass CHP plant in Kehl is a cogeneration plant fuelled with biomass (scrap wood). Considering that wood burning is carbon neutral,
the power plant works environmentally sound. The plant has an output of 8.6 MW (electrical) and 48 MW (thermal). The combined heat and
power plant supplies a paper mill with steam and feeds electricity into the public grid in line with the German Renewable Energies Act.

Dr.-Ing. Jürgen
Gr ossmann

RWE AG is already a major force in the
energy industry, but its acquisition of
Essent NV in September 2009 is likely
to take its position in the market to an
even higher level. Diane Mannion discus-
ses the impact of this merger and the
future for RWE.
of the past year.” He goes on to say, “RWE
and Essent are ideal partners. Essent makes
our portfolio more international and more
robust: in terms of electricity generation,
retail, renewables and energy trading.”

On 30th September 2009 RWE announced

its acquisition of the Dutch company
Essent NV, finalising a transaction that
had been planned since January 2009. Mr
Jürgen Grossmann, CEO of RWE AG
describes this acquisition as, “the highlight
Leading alliance
Essent NV is the largest energy company
in the Netherlands with a turnover of 5.7
billion euros and a gross profit of 1,464
million euros in 2009. If you also consider
that RWE’s revenue for 2009 was 47.7

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 28 June-July 2010

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 29 June-July 2010

billion Euros and its operating income
was 7.1 billion Euros, it will give you some
idea of the size of this new partnership.
Integration of one giant company into
another is a massive undertaking, which
will take until the end of 2010 to complete.
RWE have now formed a management
team for this new branch of the company
from a mix of Essent and RWE staff. Mr
Grossmann comments that this team is,
“working in close cooperation with its
German counterparts”, and states that
“the level of collaboration is excellent.”
Apart from being the largest energy
company, Essent is the leading producer
of sustainable energy in the Netherlands.
It also has over 150 years experience
supplying gas and over 90 years in the
generation, supply, transmission and
trading of electricity. It is a member of the
Central European Gas Hub (CEGH), which
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
RWE GROUP
High Energy
is one of the largest gas hubs in continental
Europe.
RWE is a group of seven divisions with
operations in Germany, both in power
generation, and sales and distribution; N
Power in the UK; and various operations
in Central and Eastern Europe. It also has
a renewables division called RWE Innogy;
RWE Dea, which concentrates on upstream
gas and oil; and RWE Supply and Trading,
which focuses on trading and gas
midstream. Essent is the new addition to
this group, with its headquarters in the
Netherlands and Belgium. RWE is the
biggest power producer in Germany and
third largest in the UK, and the company
also operates outside Europe.
The acquisition of Essent by RWE is just
one of the continual developments taking
place in this forwarding thinking and
expanding company, which employs more
than 70,000 staff and supplies gas to
approximately 8 million customers and
electricity to more than double that
number. The number of customers
continues to increase, and the company
flourishes despite the recession. RWE is
one of the five leading utility companies
in Europe, in terms of generation, trading,
transmission and supply of gas and
electricity, and this latest acquisition will
strengthen its position further, especially
regarding renewables.
Climate protection
In describing the company’s developments
in 2009, Mr Grossmann states: “To cite just
one example: between now and 2013,
RWE is planning to commission new power
plants and electricity generation plants
based on renewable energy with some
14,000 megawatts of capacity.”
30 June-July 2010
 RWE aims to invest 1 billion euros per annum into developing
renewable energy mainly through wind farms and biomass fuel
production. A planned wood pellet production plant will provide
raw materials for biomass used in Europe. This plant will be the
largest in the world and be situated in the USA. Mr Grossmann
favours the use of biomass over wind or sun as a renewable
energy source as he says, “unlike wind and sun, biomass is not
volatile and is always available.”
A total of 7 billion Euros is to be spent annually on environmentally
friendly and flexible generation capacity until 2013. Aside from
the 1 billion that is earmarked for renewables, the total of 7 billion
also covers expenditure on power plants, grids and open-cast
mines. The objective for the company’s investment in green
energy is for 75% of RWE’s electricity generating capacity to be
either low-carbon or CO2 free by 2025.
The company recognises the growing significance of climate
protection and energy efficiency in meeting shifting customer
needs regarding energy efficient products, both for consumers
and businesses, and includes the development of electric cars,
and electric heat pumps amongst its areas of concentration. The
heat pumps reduce CO2 emissions by 40% compared to
conventional oil-fired heating. RWE will also be allocating 90
million euros to various climate protection projects that take
place at the Coal Innovation Centre in Niederaussem, which is
the base for these R & D activities.

WE PROVIDE Continual advancement

COOLING Apart from investment in climate protection RWE is proactive in
other areas. Mr Grossmann comments, “We cannot afford to make
Your Partner for Cooling Systems
the mistake of considering climate protection in isolation. Economic
efficiency and security of supply are equally important.”
As part of its future plans the company is constructing a gas
line from the Caspian region to Western Europe, which should
Power Station Westfalen, RWE be complete within three to four years. This will further the
supply of gas and reduce the need to rely on imports. RWE is
also modernising and expanding its electricity distribution grids
to distribute energy generated from wind. Mr Grossmann sums
up the company’s views regarding its proactive approach by
stating, “When it comes to product development, we remain
alert to every market trend.”
Additionally, RWE is expanding internationally and expects 60%
of its investments to be in international markets, and 50% of its
earnings to come from international operations, by 2013. This
compares to 34% in 2009. For the coming year RWE aims to
surpass the impressive achievements seen in 2009. Mr Grossmann
states: “Ideas, investments and innovations are what we need
to maintain our competitive edge. RWE is changing in this
New Plants - Refubrishment - Services - Process Optimization - Studies competitive world. We are becoming greener, more international
For further information please contact:
and more robust. We have set ourselves a fast pace and some
HAMON THERMAL GERMANY GmbH big targets…” This view is summed up in RWE’s motto for 2009:
Alte Wittener Str. 30, 44803 Bochum, “Make big things happen.”
Phone +49-234/9355-100
www.hamon.com

Advantage through INNOVATION

RSP GmbH –
Your manufacturer of suction excavators.
Produced exactly according to your requirements
– suction excavators from RSP,
special vehicles, accessories and
stationary suction units.
RSP GmbH
Zum Silberstollen 10
D - 07318 Saalfeld
Phone: +49 (0) 3671/5721-0
Fax: +49 (0) 3671/5721-21
info@rsp-germany.com www.rsp-germany.com

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 31 June-July 2010


By Philip Bradbury
The Third EU Energy Liberalisation requi-
rements of transparency and non-discri-
mination has meant that the Indepen-
dent Transmission Operators (ITOs) must
make massive changes to their organisa-
tions’ structures, ownership and ways of
doing business. Transparency relates to
the fact that the ownership, manage-
ment and information of the business
must be entirely apparent at all times.
Non-discrimination means that all custo-
mers and suppliers must have the same
market-relevant information and they
must all be treated the same.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
AMPRION
The Power of Partnership
Amprion GmbH has taken four large steps
towards the creation of an ITO-structure.
1. Staff integration
Amprion previously had 300 people
working for it, with another 550 people
who contracted to them. These 550 people
have since been brought into the Amprion
company as full employees. This now
means that Amprion is a totally self-
sufficient entity with all its own expertise
and staffing needs now in-house.
2. Name change
In September 2008 they changed their
name to Amprion, to signal that they were
independent from their current owner,
RWE AG.
3. Appointment of independent
member to Supervisory Board
In December 2009, Hartmut Schauerte
was appointed as the independent
member of six-member Supervisory Board.
Hartmut Schauerte was, for many years,
a member of the German Bundestag and
he was the former State Secretary in the
Federal Economics Ministry. Mr Schauerte’s
independence and his long experience
as someone who has dealt with energy
policy at the top political level will provide
Amprion with worthwhile expertise in
implementing the Third EU Energy
Liberalisation requirements.
“As an independent member of the
Supervisory Board, Hartmut Schauerte will
apply his expertise to closely monitor the
32 June-July 2010
independence of Amprion. In choosing
him, we are implementing a further
requirement of the Third EU Energy
Liberalisation and are strengthening the
independence of our transmission system
operator. In this way, we make sure that
Amprion gradually becomes an
‘Independent Transmission System
Operator’ in line with EU directives” said
Jürgen Grossmann, Chairman of the
Amprion Supervisory Board.

4. Move to new offices

The company moved its offices and is
separated from other RWE companies.
This is yet another signal to the market
that Amprion is managed independently
from its parent, RWE.

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 33 June-July 2010

 AMPRION
The Power of Partnership
Overseen by
Bundesnetzagentur
Like all other ITOs, Amprion is overseen
by the German regulatory authority, the
Bundesnetzagentur. This authority controls
the business of all ITO’s, including the
annual approval of grid fees, approval of
all investments and as an appeal authority
for complaints from the customers of ITOs.
Amprion pride themselves on the fact
that they have had no appeals in the last
six years.
As well as the huge cost and effort involved
in complying with Third EU Energy
Liberalisation, Mr Marian Rappl, Head of
Corporate Communications/Public Affairs
for Amprion GmbH, told us that the
company has other challenges too:

Challenge of power
from renewable sources
The environmental benefit of sourcing
power from renewable sources is
undeniable. However, there is a cost to
that and one of the costs is that most of
Germany’s renewable-sourced power
(mainly from wind) is not where most of
the power is consumed.
Previously, power plants were built where
the power was most needed – where
populations and industries were of highest
concentration. However, they cannot
command the wind to blow when and
where we want it to! Most of Germany’s
wind power generation is in the north of
Germany - mostly from off-shore wind
turbines and the number of on-shore ones
is increasing all the time. The strategic
problems with this are two-fold: New lines
need to be built, taking the power from
the north, down to central and southern
Germany and the inability to store wind
Challenge of Challenge of new
power. Previously, power could be saved uninterrupted power investments and
with a two-dam system. When power
production exceeded supply, it could be Germany has the lowest interruption time technologies
used to pump water from the lower to of power in Europe. Amprion serves
Mainly because of the need to transport
the higher dam. Then, when more power 27 million people and links Luxembourg,
power further (as per 1. above) Amprion’s
was needed, it could be generated by the Netherlands, France, Switzerland and
ten-year plan is to expand their supply
releasing water from the higher to the Austria with Germany. It has had no
network by 800 kilometres of new lines.
lower dam. This cannot be done with wind interruption to its power supply. It
This will cost three billion euros. They are
power and so the balancing of power manages this by always having two lines
also developing several new technologies
production and usage is more difficult to to feed power to all of its customers. This
and three of them are:
attain – for example, less power is needed benefits its customers but it obviously
at night but the wind doesn’t stop blowing increases the cost of delivering that A high temperature line. The higher the
just because the sun has gone down! power. voltage through a line, the hotter it gets

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 34 June-July 2010

and there is a limit of around 100 degrees
for steel lines. This obviously restricts the
voltage that can go through so Amprion
are developing lines that are made mainly
of porcelain and aluminium – they will be
able to take higher temperatures and,
therefore, larger power loads.
Underground lines. These are made in a
ducting system where there is a special
gaseous layer between the line and its
outer shell. This type of line is currently
being trialled at Frankfurt airport, under
the runway.
Lines made of cable. These can take larger
power loadings than the current power
lines. This system needs twelve 380-volt
cables, in parallel, and these will be in a
pilot project in use in 2015.
where they abound, the company
has installed equipment so that the
birds can see the lines and do not
injure themselves against it.
Mr Marian Rappl said that while the current
economic climate had reduced the power
usage of some of their industrial customers,
the effect of the credit crunch on Amprion
was minimal. Asked what were three
things that had made Amprion so
successful, Mr Rappl said it was:
That the company was very good at using
innovation and continues to bring in new
technology,
that they were well linked to other
transmission system operators and that
they understood themselves to be partners
(not competitors) with their customers, the
government and the regulatory agencies.
It was this working together that made the
future brighter for all concerned.

Challenge of
environmental
protection
Given that Amprion has 11,000 kilometres
of electricity grid and is the third largest
grid operator in Europe, supplying electricity
to a massive 73.1 square kilometres, its
environmental impact is a high priority
management focus. The protection of the
environment and preservation of the natural
foundations for life are key precepts for
action at Amprion GmbH.
Two of its several environmental initiatives
are:
1. Bio-top management. For a power grid
to cross a forest, the trees below the
line need to be felled. Once the line is
installed, Amprion then manages the
ground below to sustain as much of the
natural flora and fauna as is possible.
With 10,500 hectares of bio-top to
administer, this is a huge project.
2. Bird protection. Amprion has tar-
geted particular bird species and,

By Gabrielle Brown
As natural gas is increasingly being seen
as the greener, most economical fossil
fuel, it’s a poignant time to look back
and review how the gas industry has
developed over time. Croatia’s capital,
Zagreb, first made use of gas as an ener-
gy source in the middle of the nineteen-
th century. Now, Gradska plinara Zagreb
(Zagreb City Gas) and Gradska plinara
Zagreb – Opskrba (Zagreb City Gas - Sup-
ply) share the responsibility of ensuring
the city’s gas supply is safe, secure and,
now being natural gas, environmentally
sound.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
GRADSKA PLINARA ZAGREB
Past, Present and Future
Gradska plinara
Zagreb – history
It was as far back as 1862 when Zagreb
City Council made the decision to build
a coal gas factory. Just one year later, some
three-hundred gas lamps illuminated the
Zagreb streets and squares, and soon after
gas supply was extended to the city’s
households. Local shareholders took over
the gasworks in 1873 and gas consumption
increased day by day until when in 1877
it reached 437,828 m³.
In 1900 the City of Zagreb repurchased
all gasworks shares from shareholders
and the gasworks was reorganized and
named Gradska plinara Zagreb (‘Zagreb
City Gas‘). As the town grew, the gas
network also expanded, amounting to
72 km in 1930 and then increasing to
114km by 1940.
A particularly noteworthy period for
Gradska plinara Zagreb from a marketing
perspective was between the two World
Wars. During this time, not only did the
company launch a vigorous advertising
campaign promoting the use of gas for
cooking and heating, but they also
36 June-July 2010
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 37 June-July 2010

organized for cooking courses to be held
(a hands-on means to demonstrate the
benefits of cooking with gas) and for
newsletters on the subject to be distributed
to households across the city .
In 1955, Zagreb was supplied with natural
gas from Croatian gas fields. Plants for the
production of city gas from natural gas
were put into operation in 1958. Then, in
1978, imported natural gas was introduced
to Zagreb via the gas trunk line. This is
when the process of replacing the city
gas with natural gas began. As consumers
were switching to natural gas, old pipelines
were replaced. In 1993, the last plant for
the production of city gas was closed and
since then only natural gas has been
distributed.
Operations today
Based on the relevant legislative
regulations and in accordance with the
EU Directive (55/2003), the network
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
GRADSKA PLINARA ZAGREB
Past, Present and Future
management was separated from the
energy trading operations in April 2008
by the founding of a new company:
Gradska plinara Zagreb – Opskrba d.o.o.
( Zagreb City Gas – Supply Ltd.).
Gradska plinara
Zagreb – Opskrba –
overview
Put simply, Gradska plinara Zagreb –
Opskrba is responsible for natural gas
procurement and supply to the end user.
Founded by Zagrebački Holding, a company
100% owned by the City of Zagreb, the
company has equity amounting to HRK 40
million and a staff of 147 employees,
transposed from the distribution system
operator Gradska plinara Zagreb.
Gradska plinara Zagreb – Opskrba is the
sole supplier of compressed natural gas in
the Republic of Croatia. A vehicle filling
plant for Zagreb public transport is currently
under construction and there are 60 buses
and some 300 lightweight delivery vehicles
and cars using this type of fuel at present.
In 2009 Gradska plinara Zagreb – Opskrba
supplied gas to 252,000 buyers in the City
of Zagreb and to parts of Zagreb County.
Some 450 million m³ of natural gas was
supplied, 65% to households and 35% to
industrial customers. The company
portfolio also includes a laboratory for
repairing, gauging and testing gas-meters
and other measuring equipment. Total
revenue for 2009 amounted to HRK 923
million, and the profit after tax was some
HRK 11 million.
Gradska plinara
Zagreb – overview
Gradska plinara Zagreb is the distribution
system operator for the area of the City of
Zagreb and part of Zagreb County. With
38 June-July 2010
 a staff of 419 it is wholly owned by the City In 2009, the company achieved a total by their market competitors. They are also
of Zagreb. The distribution network of the income of HRK 327 million, with profit intent in maintaining and reinforcing their
gas pipeline with three pressure levels after tax amounting to HRK 7 million. status as Croatia’s leading natural gas
extends for 70km east–west and for 30km distribution and supply companies.
north–south, and has a total length of
The success of the group is dependent
3,600 km. Natural gas enters the system
at five take-over measuring-reduction
A bright, green future on its highly qualified staff who are
encouraged to develop and apply new
stations and is then further distributed by With constant improvement in the quality knowledge and technologies, with a
the pipelines through 300 reduction of services, both Gradska plinara Zagreb notable focus on exploiting the advantages
stations to the customer. – Opskrba and Gradska plinara Zagreb, of natural gas as the most environmentally
Gradska plinara Zagreb is certified ISO along with their buyers and partners, are acceptable and economically cost-effective
9001:2000, HRN EN ISO 9001:2002 and poised to respond to challenges posed energy commodity.
IQNet. Continued investment in
mainstreaming the existing network and
in planning the introduction of gas in new
areas have resulted in the company
establishing itself as the leading gas
distributor in Croatia.
As well as natural gas distribution, Gradska
plinara Zagreb provides additional
services in the areas of the construction
and reconstruction of pipelines, house
con nection and distribution system
elements, testing pipelines for leakage,
gas installation testing and gas-meter
replacement.

CATHODIC PROTECTION
LEADERS IN REGION

Since 1994 our main activity is to perform

www.pa-el.hr info@pa-el.hr
the reconstruction of gas pipelines, water mains,
gas metering stations, gas installations, heating
and cooling systems, welding works, maintenance
and testing gas installations.
Design & Consulting
Diagnostics
Equipment EUROCIJEV d.o.o.
Installation Savica-Šanci 123, Zagreb www.eurocijev.hr
Maintenance tel: 2404-280, fax: 2404-279 mail: marija@eurocijev.hr
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu

Fast-growing, innovative businesses
tend to steal the limelight over steady,
traditional setups. But speaking to
Gabrielle Brown, Dr Manfred Diederichs,
Managing Director of the open-die
forging company Dirostahl – Karl Diede-
richs KG, explains how his 400-year-old
business thrives by offering clients years
of experienced craftsmanship and time-
honoured customer service.
There’s something deeply heartening
about Dr Diederichs’ traditional approach
to business. Forging is the oldest form of
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
KARL DIEDERICHS KG – DIROSTAHL
True as Steel
metalworking, and the Diederichs’ family
established their forging business in 1550.
Still located in the Bergisches Land, a
region in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany,
where Dirostahl – Karl Diederichs KG
thrives today, with a staff of 480. Its
unhindered success is largely down to
employing the values of loyalty and
stability across all aspects of its
operations.
The Diederichs’ forging business was
initially powered by water, with a water
wheel driving the hammer used to shape
and compresses the metal into its desired
shape. “My ancestors initially made small
items, such as horseshoes, but then in
1919 my grandfather moved the
workshops up to the top of the mountain
because instead of needing to be near
the water, it became more important to
be near the train station.” By this time,
steam power and later on hydraulic presses
had replaced the water wheel driven
hammer, and the Diederichs were able to
broaden the range and size of their
products.
Dr Diederichs is enthusiastic and proud
of the craft to which his family has
40 June-July 2010
 remained continuously committed.
“Forged steel is the best form and the
highest quality of steel. The forging
process makes for stronger metal than if
the part is only cast because the grain is
compressed tightly and the grains line up
in a continuous formation, according to
the shape of the part.”
The steel bars, shafts, discs, plates and
rings made by Dirostahl are used across
numerous engineering applications in
many industries, from automobile
manufacture to the fabrication of
suspension bridges. One particularly
typical application with investment in
offshore wind farms prevailing across
Europe is in the construction of gear boxes
used in wind turbines. Although Dirostahl’s
clients are largely Europe based, the
company’s products are shipped onwards
as far as China, where local forges cannot
yet match the Dirostahl’s centuries of
experience.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
A case of David
beating Goliath?
Open-die forging, the forging undertaken
by Dirostahl, is more suited to short-run
production. The ‘die’ is the flat surface that
the metal work-pieces come into contact
with as they are hit by the hammer and
being ‘open’ means that the work-piece
is not enclosed by the die. Therefore, the
metalworker must turn and adjust the
work-piece against the die to achieve the
desired shape. “We start with pieces
weighing 15–16kg and go up to 32,000kg.
With this broad range of weight we can
create all forms – shafts, rings, blocks,
square parts. All dimensions and forms
that can be forged, we do forge.”
Being so versatile gives Dirostahl the
advantage against the larger, mass-
producing forging firms. Variety and
versatility beats quantity. “Some of the
41 June-July 2010
 KARL DIEDERICHS KG – DIROSTAHL
True as Steel
big forging companies have closed today
because in comparison, open-die forging
is a flexible and quick option. We are
forging the pieces in ones and twos, and
it’s all on demand. Everything is made
according to order. We don’t have
stock.”
Again, there is something heartening
about this demand-led production model.
Whereas the big forging workshops will
set up enormous presses and produce
huge quantities that then have to be
pushed to the market, Dirostahl works at
the highest level of efficiency; there is
little room for waste or dead stock.

“Good old-fashioned
customer service”
There’s no sign at Dirostahl that having
its roots planted firmly in the past in any
way holds the company back. In fact, its
commitment to traditional business
practices, and an all-too-rare awareness
of the value of continuity, is what maintains
clients’ loyalty. “I have members of staff
who have been here for years and years
– more than 25 years. Our clients know
that they can speak to the same person
again and again over the years. Having
this familiarity is important, because many
of our clients work in the same way and
have family owned businesses them-
selves.”
Dr Diederichs adds that his sales staff
makes a point of always meeting clients
face to face and that he himself has an
open-door policy, whereby if a client
wants to speak to him, they will be put
through directly. “When people call me,
they speak to me, not to my secretary.
I am always accessible.” The concept of

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 42 June-July 2010

taking responsibility and being account-
able is embodied in the business’s name
– not just ‘Dirostahl’ but ‘Dirostahl - Karl
Diederichs’, so when colleagues and
clients speak to Dr Diederichs, they know
he is representing the company in
earnest.
Local corporate
citizenship
The Bergische Land has accommodated
Dirostahl and the Diederichs family for
four centuries, so it is no surprise that
loyalty and commitment go beyond the
factory and into the local community.
Once more, rather than being as a result
of top-level policy on corporate social
responsibility, or similar, Dirostahl is an
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
active member of the local community
simply because the company is inherently
ingrained in local culture. It also appears
to be a culture of celebration and fun,
with Dr Diederichs and his staff taking
part in local carnivals, dragon boat racing
and processions, where Dirostahl staff
perform traditional metal-smithing on
their own decorated float.
Continuing to thrive
While maintaining traditional values,
Dirostahl continues to invest in equipment
and technology to improve efficiency and
broaden capability. “We are preparing a
new hall for turning big shafts and we’re
investing in a new heat treatment
operation,” says Dr Diederichs, mentioning
just a couple of developments underway
at present. He also anticipates business
gathering pace as the recession of the last
two years recedes. “We have managed to
keep going as normal and we now hope
that business will start to improve…we
are ready!”
Open-die forging can only be successful
as a customer-focused business, with
production being solely driven by cus-
tomer requirements and products made
to particular specifications. As Dirostahl
and the Diederichs family demonstrate,
being able to provide customers with a
dedicated and steady service goes hand
in hand with this philosophy. It’s all about
the personal touch, and Dr Diederichs
very much gives me the impression that
his business is in many ways all about the
people, as much as the craftsmanship
they trade.
43 June-July 2010

By Philip Bradbury
When two Austrian brothers (Josef and
Hans Bühl, both engineers) started their
non-ferrous foundry, they could not
have imagined what the business was
to become. In 1924 they moved their
foundry to Maribor on Motherjeva ulica,
Slovenia, where Mariborska livarna
Maribor (MLM) is still sited.
Josef and Hans started their business with
founding brass as flats, rods and tubes.
The logical development from this was to
produce other non-ferrous metals like
aluminium and copper.
History
However, as Mr Branko Žerdoner, Chairman
of the Board, explained, the company’s
range of products – and the way it produces
them – has expanded considerably in the
ensuing 86 years. In 1945 the foundry
underwent a complete restoration,
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
MARIBORSKA LIVARNA MARIBOR
Turning on the Tap and Radiating Success
following damage from World War II. This
restoration project included the addition
of die casting machinery. MLM had started
making components for the automotive
industry, which requires huge quantities
of identical products. The die casting
process ensured the precise production
of these massive quantities of components,
something that was impossible with the
foundry process.
In 1949 MLM implemented their pressure
die casting programme. The company was
the first industrial company in Yugoslavia
with this type of production, thus
becoming a significant supplier of the
developing mechanical, automobile and
electrical industries.
Branding
MLM started out by producing quantities
of brass that others incorporated in their
own branded products. Then they moved
on producing their own branded products
as well.
44 June-July 2010
In 1967 MLM introduced the Armal brand
of sanitary taps, characterised by high
quality, reliability and modern shape. In
four decades, Armal became the leading
brand in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, and Serbia. The proof is that
there is at least one sanitary tap in almost
three quarters of households in these
markets. Today, around one million Armal
taps are produced a year and MLM is the
fifth largest producer of taps in Europe.
In 1974 MLM began producing the Aklimat
aluminium radiators. With these, MLM
found a new market niche opportunity.
Aklimat brand is today the synonym of
quality and occupies an important position
in traditional markets of Eastern Europe
and Russia. The advantage of Aklimat
radiators is the high level of adaptability
to the needs of customers.
Today’s market
MLM’s current production is shared by
three categories of products:
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
One third is forged and semi-finished and to rethink its whole strategy. However,
products made from copper and copper it has not diminished their resolve to grow
alloys: rods of various shapes and the company and, recently, they signed
dimensions, wires, pressed parts and an agreement with Volkswagen to produce
workpieces, one third is branded products automobile parts – mainly a new gear box
– Armal taps, Aklimat radiators and one for a car due to roll out in 2011 – and MLM
third is products for the automotive is currently spending around 1 million
industry – mainly gearing and anti- euros on new plant to produce these
vibration parts. components. No extra employees for this
project will be employed as many of the
current staff will be retrained in the new
The consequences of technology involved.
the credit crunch
Mr Branko Žerdoner started with MLM in
2002 and, at that time, the company’s
turnover was 50 million euros. For the year
ended June 2008, the turnover had
doubled to 100 million euros.
Then the credit crunch hit and their gross
sales (turnover) for the year to June 2009
was 60 million euros – a 40% drop in
business. Because of this, the company
has had to shed a number of employees
45 June-July 2010

Employee training
The reputation of the company and its
products are totally reliant on the
employees’ skill and training and, in
recognition of this, MLM invest (on
average) forty hours a year of training in
every staff member. They run their own
in-house school and the training includes
all relevant engineering trades and skills,
as well as marketing, finance, IT and – most
importantly – communication skills.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
MARIBORSKA LIVARNA MARIBOR
Turning on the Tap and Radiating Success
The factors of success
When asked what the main reasons that
MLM had survived and grown – despite
world wars, credit crunches and many
other challenges – Mr Branko Žerdoner
answered with typical humility. Taking no
credit for himself, he cited the advantages
of MLM’s and Slovenia’s geographic,
financial and cultural position:
There is no language barrier and they can
deal with anyone in Europe.
The company is very open to accepting
experts from outside Slovenia. To illustrate
this point, Mr Žerdoner explained that his
three closest colleagues at the company
were from Bordeaux, Vienna and Frankfurt.
As he said, the company is a very “colourful”
one, with many nationalities involved.
There are two large airports nearby and
MLM is very near a highway. Transport
access is, then, well provided.
Slovenia is blessed with large existing
industrial complexes and its wages are
relatively low, so its products were very
attractive to Western Europe, where most
of MLM’s products are exported to.
MLM has a huge focus on its employees
having constant customer contact and
this ensures that the company is acutely
aware of the changing needs of its
markets.
Current focus
At the moment, MLM exports 80% of its
products, with only 20% going to Slovenia.
A full 54% of its output goes to EU
countries. The German-speaking countries
are its main market focus at the moment
and the recent deal with Volkswagen is
proof of the benefit of this policy. Also,
with Austria nearby, there are many
opportunities close at hand.
The company has four main divisions:
Alutec, which manufactures various tools
and aluminium pressure die castings,
some intended for their own production
of sanitary taps and radiators. The majority
of the castings are for the automobile,
electrical and mechanical industries. They
develop innovative solutions for the
specific needs of the most demanding
global clients - from the concept, through
to the prototype and to the mass
production of products.
Baker, which manufactures semi-finished
products made from copper and copper
alloys: rods of various shapes and
dimensions, wires, pressed parts and
workpieces. High dynamics of investments
and rich construction and technological
know-how enable the production of
quality products intended for a broad
circle of consumers.
46 June-July 2010
Armal, the leading brand of kitchen and bathroom sanitary
taps in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and
Serbia.
Aklimat, which has been manufacturing aluminium Waste water
radiators and fittings for their installation since 1974.
problems? KMU UMWELTSCHUTZ GMBH

Water is our element.

The future We solve them.

The experience of doubling sales from 2002 to 2007 and
then seeing them drop by 40% a year later, has meant
that the management of MLM is justifiably cautious about
forecasting the future. However, their current (conservative)
budget is that their sales for the next year will rise by 16-
32% to 70 or 80 million euros.
This result is impressive, given the current credit crisis,
and something the two Austrian brothers - Josef and Hans
Bühl – could never have dreamed of!
You want to reduce the costs for the disposal of the waste water?
And additionally you want to make YOUR production waste water free
by reusing the purified water? Then you have to use the advantages
of the PROWADEST® evaporator systems.
You have high demands on energy conservation, high efficiency,
perfect service, professional consulting and much more? Then feel
free to contact us!
KMU Umweltschutz GmbH - D 79688 Hausen - T +49 7622 666 96 0
www.kmu.com - info@kmu.com

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 47 June-July 2010


M-Profil, a thriving Croatia-based
company specialising in the production
of metal building components, has ex-
perienced fifteen years of uninterrupted
growth. Sales and Marketing Director
Ms Sandra Bojić talks to Gabrielle Brown
about M-Profil’s commitment to quality
and innovation, and its plans to branch
out into the Western European market.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
M-PROFIL
Building Business
Like many South Eastern European count-
ries the last decade saw a period of boom
for the Croatian construction industry,
with significant development in the cities
and as more and more holiday makers
were drawn to the country. Zabok-based
M-Profil, a manufacturer of prefabricated
metal construction components used in
the building of shopping centres, ware-
houses, sports premises, residential and
administrative developments, to name
but a few, was founded in 1995 and has
gone from strength to strength since.
“The business has experienced fairly
extensive growth over the last fifteen
years, and our products and services have
evolved also. Initially we sold and
assembled roofs; now our expertise is in
providing a range of products including
steel constructions, metal sheets and
insulated sandwich panels, and we offer
a tailor-made service so our products can
be installed directly on the building site”
explains Ms Bojić.
48 June-July 2010
High standards and
innovation
M-Profil has grown from being a four-man
outfit to a company of 520 employees.
Despite now being considered large in
Croatia, the company’s mission is to
maintain the same standards and level of
quality that is perhaps more easily
accomplished across smaller operations.
Ms Bojić describes how quality is achieved
at M-Profil:“We have invested and advanced
the technology used in our production for
steel structures and sandwich panels. We’ve
also successfully applied ISO 9000 and ISO
14000 to quality assurance control systems.”
Ongoing training for staff is also central to
M-Profil’s culture, ensuring they have a
sound understanding of customers’ needs
and are up-to-date with the latest
developments in the market.
Innovation also plays a large part in
M-Profil’s corporate strategy. “We are
contributing to a European project to
develop panel technology as much as
possible – and our task is to provide
samples and disseminate our knowledge
of the current and evolving technologies
involved.” Ms Bojić explained also that
M-Profil was preparing for an event where
this knowledge will be shared amongst
colleagues across the construction industry
in the region – the first event of its kind.

A flexible and
comprehensive service
M-Profil offers its clients a ‘turn-key
solution’, meaning the quality service is
as important as the product. I asked Ms
Bojić to describe how this concept
originated: “As the demand for steel
products expanded we soon realised that
we would have to expand our operations.
We invested in neighbouring countries
where labour costs were lower, and we
acquired companies that had production
facilities that would complement our
range. So today we can offer a complete
solution to customers.” Under M-Profil’s
umbrella are six companies that together
offer customers a comprehensive range
of products and services, covering
fieldwork, concrete, asphalt, the erection
of steel structures and installing sandwich
panels for walls and roofs. Clients with
existing projects can have their building
constructed to specified requirements or

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 49 June-July 2010


M-Profil can plan and undertake the entire
project on the client’s behalf.
Providing such a versatile range of products
and services allows M-Profil to quickly
adapt to meet the market’s demands. “We
are considered to be lucky in a way because
when the Croatian construction industry
in Croatia was growing we were growing
too. And the investments that we made
in neighbouring countries opened new
markets for us and made it possible for us
to quickly and efficiently react to customers’
needs, not only in Croatia but also in the
neighbouring countries.”
Equally, being agile suits the current market
state which, although demand might not
be growing at the pace it was, still
comprises customers who see the benefits
of going to one customer who can provide
them with an all-inclusive service, and
deliver the goods quickly. “Time is money,
and we‘re ready to respond at the shortest
notice. Even though we are large, we are
still ‘small’! We are a limited company, so
there is very little bureaucracy involved in
decision making. So, we can save our
customers money by ensuring short
delivery times and getting projects
underway fairly quickly.”
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
M-PROFIL
Building Business
Developing innovative
products
M-Profil constantly monitors new pro-
ducts being produced and launched
around Europe to assess the viability
of producing something similar and
taking it to market in Croatia. They are
currently bringing to market a new
insulation product BENTOTEX, a geo-
synthetic clay liner (GCL) which Ms Bojić
explains has highly developed properties
yet remains cost-effective. It is produced
at M-Profil’s facilities in Serbia and the
company is in the process of promoting
it throughout Croatia.
However, it’s the steel construction
products that remain the most profitable
for M-Profil and they are likely to do so
for the foreseeable future. “The real-
estate agents predicted that the
expansion in the construction industry
is set to continue in Croatia. Here in the
capital Zagreb we have seen considerable
expansion, but there is still a lot of room
to expand elsewhere in other cities, and
then later to Bosnia and Serbia. There
is plenty of room for growth.”
The future
M-Profil, while happy to continue deve-
loping the Croatian market, intend to
broaden their appeal to meet the de-
mand outside South-Eastern Europe.
“Over the last ten years the real-estate
market in Croatia has flourished,
definitely. But two years ago we decided
that the mass market is not enough for
us strategically – we have to find other
opportunities. We have to place our
products in Western Europe with more
competitive prices.”
In preparation for taking this step
M-Profil is in the process of acquiring
certification in production standards
not yet enforced in Croatia but obli-
gatory elsewhere in Europe. Their
aspirations are perhaps a little more
modest than at the beginning of the
millennium, but they are positive
nonetheless. “We hope to continue to
grow. But yes, maybe at a lesser rate
than over the last ten years.” At any
rate, M-Profil’s focus and unhindered
enthusiasm are an accomplishment in
themselves.
50 June-July 2010
 pu}lj¾ylthjvu

~‹’ˆ–„ˆê’‰êz{llsêwyvmpslz±êwsh{lz±ê
zoll{z±êwpwlz±ê{|ilz±êihyzꄑ‡ê’•ˆ

h‡‡•ˆ––®ê ê j’‘—„†—®
p‘™ˆ†êyˆ„†’‘ꇭ’­’­ê {ˆ®êêê У¨¦êªá½êꥤ¾¢¥¾§¨¢
pvjꁄ“’ˆêppp½¦ê m„›­®êê У¨¦êªá½ê¥¤¾¢¥¾§©ª
¡£§ªês’Š„—ˆ†ê ê l„Œ®êŒ‘‰’ÍŒ‘™ˆ†¾•ˆ„†’‘­–Œ
z’™ˆ‘Œ„ ~ˆ…®êꚚš­Œ‘™ˆ†¾•ˆ„†’‘­–Œ

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 51 June-July 2010


FACC AG (founded in 1989, headquar-
tered in Ried im Innkreis, Austria) is
a leading company specializing in the
development, design and manufacture
of composite components and systems
for civil aircraft. With 1,581 employees
it serves customers like Airbus, Boeing,
Bombardier Aerospace, Embraer, EADS,
Eurocopter, BAE-Systems, Diehl Aircabin,
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Rolls-Roy-
ce, Sikorsky, Sukhoi and many others.
FACC achieved a great turnover of 265.3
million EUR in 2009 (a growth compared
to 251.9 million EUR in 2008) mostly by
exporting its products to countries such
as USA, Canada, Germany, France, Italy,
Spain, England, Japan, China, Australia,
Brazil, Russia, etc.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
FACC
The Way to Success
The new ownership
pursued under the former owners and
As well as other news, there has been a
provide the company access to new capital
significant change in the ownership
as well as to the fast growing markets of
structure of FACC AG. The acquisition of
China and the Asia-Pacific region. “The
the majority of FACC AG by the international
rapid development of the Chinese
aerospace company Xi’an Aircraft Industry
aerospace industry offers FACC many
(Group) Company Ltd. (XAC) and the
opportunities and it is important for us
private equity company Advanced Treasure
to integrate ourselves in the world. The
Limited (ATL), announced in October, was
transaction will bring positive results for
finalised on December 3, 2009: XAC and
both parties as well as a positive future,”
ATL are now formally the majority owners
said Geng Ruguang, Vice President of
of FACC AG. Through a Chinese and an
XAC’s parent company AVIC. FACC will
Austrian ownership association they own
remain a stand-alone independent
91.25% of the shares.
corporate entity with the current
The new owner will reinforce the successful management team under the leadership
international growth strategy that FACC of CEO Walter Stephan.
52 June-July 2010
Innovation is the key
to success
“In 2009, in addition to the changes in
ownership structure, one topic took
precedence for FACC AG and became a
focus of our work: innovation,” says Mr
Stephan. “It is important to constantly
improve the competitiveness of both FACC
and that of our customers,” he continues.
By innovation Mr Stephan does not
necessarily mean developing new products
just for the sake of having to offer something
new. It means, rather, that new technologies
must fulfil certain requirements to be
considered truly innovative. A good
example is the spoiler FACC has developed
that weighs 30% less and is considerably
less complicated to install due to a new
integrated composite fitting.

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 53 June-July 2010


But why focus on innovation at this point?
Mr Stephan explains: “Due to current
economical conditions with stagnating
turnover, innovation has become more
important than ever before, especially for
a relatively small but strongly growth-
oriented company like FACC. For this
reason innovation is a central factor for
us in our quest for successful profitable
growth in the future. Today’s innovation
is meant to ensure that FACC can continue
to see strong growth in the coming years,
in spite of stagnation in the aviation
industry. We have always been able to
achieve this in past recessions - in 1994
as well as in 2002. This makes us optimistic
that we can cope with the current
downturn.”
And what do the
plans for innovation
include?
“The aviation industry is currently in a
phase in which a technological revolution
is taking place where a rather high
percentage of the total weight of an
airplane is of fiber composite materials,”
explains Mr Stephan. So FACC is currently
working on making fiber composite
materials more ‘affordable’. This should be
taken care of with new production
technologies such as the RTM (Resin
Transfer Moulding) process, as well as new
material developments. In addition, the
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
FACC
The Way to Success
efforts of FACC to increasingly involve low
wage countries in the procurement
process help increase customers’ benefits
and their competitiveness.
In order to ensure that FACC remains
leader in innovation in the area of
composites, they also reorganized their
research area in mid 2009 and created an
additional profit centre called “FACC
Solutions” to complement the existing
Aerostructures, Engine & Nacelles and
Interiors profit centres. FACC Solutions,
headed by Johannes Noisternig, combines
the engineering offices of Vienna and
Bratislava (Slovakia) and the R&D
department of Ried and cooperates closely
w i t h t h e p ro d u c t d e ve l o p m e n t
departments of the three profit centres.
Key technology: New
RTM production
In summer 2009, a new kind of RTM and
preform production was started up at
FACC. This is the world’s only production
machinery for the industrial manufacturing
of aviation-approved RTM components.
RTM is a process whereby preforms are
installed into a closed mould, injected
with resin and then cured by applying
pressure and heat. In contrast to the
conventional lay-up process of autoclave
technology, the RTM process makes it
possible to produce substantially more
complex geometries. The new process is
currently being used at FACC for the
manufacturing of centre hinge fittings
(CHF) for the A330/A340 spoiler and can
also be adapted to be used for other
projects, such as the A350 spoiler.
54 June-July 2010
The revolutionary production method at FACC presents
a solution in which production times and energy costs
can be considerably reduced. The new RTM method and
machinery had previously only been tested under
laboratory conditions. Due to FACC’s spirit of innovation,
the process is being used for the first time in the industry
and makes industrial serial production of performs and
RTM components possible. And as an added feature, the
introduction of the new RTM process made it possible to
Enikon
improve processes and automation.
We are providing
preparation work for painting
FACC – the best supplier and decorating (washing,
puttying and grinding), primer
In a ceremony held in November 2009, Embraer awarded and final coating of aircraft
FACC with the Supplier of the Year 2009 Award in the interior components.
category of “Development Program”. By awarding this
trophy, the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer wanted to pay
tribute to the excellence of its best suppliers in terms of Willy Messerschmidt Strasse 2, 88471 Laupheim, Germany
quality, flexibility, delivery reliability, customer support Tel: +49 (07392) 16 991 53| Fax: +49 (07392) 96 29 72
and innovation. “From the very first, innovation was one E-mail: marko.andrijanic@enikon.com, www.enikon.com
of the key growth drivers at FACC. We are very proud that
our efforts gained recognition with this award, confirming
FACC as the best development partner of Embraer,” said
Mr Stephan when he accepted the award in São José dos
Campos.

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 55 June-July 2010


By Gabrielle Brown
Finnish company ESL Shipping operates
a versatile fleet across often ice-stricken
seas. CEO Markus Karjalainen describes
how his company maintains its expertise
in such a challenging environment and
discusses notable developments in his
and his clients’ market conditions.
ESL Shipping transpor ts dr y raw
materials in the Baltic Sea region, an
extremely testing environment
demanding ships equipped to cope
with sub-zero temperatures. These
ice-strengthened vessels enable goods
to be transported year round and ESL’s
shallow-drafted fleet are capable of
travelling in the region’s notoriously
shallow ports.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ESL SHIPPING
Cool Cruising
In 2009 ESL had a fleet of 16 vessels
and has just recently invested in a new
ship, bigger than any in the existing
fleet and due to be launched in early
2012, so business is clearly look set
to remain strong for ESL. “We own a
large, interchangeable fleet, allowing
us to provide a flexible and reliable
service,” says Mr Karjalainen, though
adding that, “the size of harbours and
depth of shipping channels in the
Baltic Sea sets hard limits on vessel
sizes.” The Baltic region, however,
offers a growing market for ESL, with
opportunities for transporting huge
quantities of raw materials from Russia
as well as consumer and industrial
goods. ESL’s current clients largely
operate in the energy, steel and
chemical industries.
ESL Shipping was founded as a result
of its parent company Aspo, a con-
glomerate of specialised business-to-
bu si ness brands, identifying the
financial benefits of buying its own
ship to transport the coal and coke it
was impor ting to ser ve domestic
energy needs in Finland. The MS
Arkadia was bought in 1949 and from
there grew a fleet of ships all equipped
to deal with the unforgiving conditions
of the Baltic. In fact the Finnish mer-
chant navy now comprises 15% ESL
Shipping vessels, which are all manned
by Finnish crews and sail under the
Finnish flag.
56 June-July 2010
ESL, energy, and the
environment
I t ’s a n i n t e re s t i n g t i m e fo r t h e
transportation industry within the
context of environmental concerns.
There is increasing pressure to reduce
the amount of goods transported via
road, so marine transport appeals as
an alternative where the route allows
it. In addition, shipping’s appeal
increases as ships become capable of
t a k i n g o n l a rg e r l o a d s, t h e re by
operating more efficiently, and as
technological improvements enable
ships’ emission levels to decrease.
Coal continues to make up a large
portion of ESL Shipping’s cargo, so
the business is naturally engaged with

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 57 June-July 2010


issues surrounding the future of coal
as an energy source. There are some
interesting outcomes to the debate:
should the demand for coal diminish
then ESL is equipped to transport
other energy supplies, such as biomass
fuel commodities. However, with
increasing research into how coal can
be more efficiently used, this reduction
in demand could well be only in the
short term. “The industry now does
not so much question the role of coal
as a source of energy, but rather
focuses on solutions for limiting its
adverse impacts,” says Mr Karjalainen.
Such solutions include recovering
carbon dioxide emissions, research
into which will begin in 2015 in Finland
Preferred supplier
of sustainable
ship designs for
the Baltic Sea.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ESL SHIPPING
Cool Cruising
at the Meri-Pori coal plant. Should this
research show favourable results then
the demand for coal could in fact
increase in the long term.
Supporting steel
production
ESL Shipping serves numerous steel
industry clients in the Nordic region
for whom they transport not only iron
ore and pellets but also coking gas
and limestone used in the steel
manufacturing process. With a tight
network of clients in the industry ESL
sails long-haul under full cargo,
keeping costs down for the client and
ensuring ESL operates at maximum
efficiency. Part of ESL’s commitment
to clients is to follow the ‘just on time’
principal; in the case of steel industry
clients, who rely on small, frequent
shipments, ESL ensures it has a regular,
reliable transport schedule.
Even during the recession ESL Shipping
saw a constant demand from steel
industry clients, and this looks set to
continue for the foreseeable future.
“Our customers in the steel industry
are successful in their own niche
businesses and produce products with
a high degree of added value,” says
Mr Karjalainen.
58 June-July 2010
 ESL poised to benefit from
Tonnage Tax
A new Tonnage Tax soon to be introduced by the
Finnish Parliament will effectively mean that ESL
Shipping will be tax exempt. This law is already in
place in numerous European countries, so its approval
in Finland will see ESL’s potential earnings improve.
“It’s important for us to finally be on a level playing
field with competing shipping companies in other
countries,” says Mr Karjalainen.

Specialised success
In 2009 ESL Shipping’s net sales totalled EUR 63.8
million with an operating profit of EUR 14.7 million.
Considering the decline in transported cargo and
overall business environment this was a sound result.
The Baltic Sea is, however, a comparatively stable
market, and by having established such a strong
capability to manoeuvre across the waters whatever
the conditions, together with strong client relations
throughout the Nordic region, ESL Shipping is in an
enviably strong position. “We are well versed in the
features and practices of the harbours we sail to. The
Baltic Sea will remain ESL Shipping’s home market,” Making every port your home port
says Mr Karjalainen.
Even when you are far away from home,
you can rely on us to manage your port
call quickly and efficiently.
www.wilhelmsen.com/shipsservice

Time is not still

So why waste yours

on static bilge water treatment?
In a pitching and rolling environment, only a dynamic system
like Alfa Laval’s PureBilge offers continuous bilge water
Phone: +372 610 2996
treatment. PureBilge uses centrifugal separation to handle
Phone/Fax: +372 610 2997
MOB(24 hrs): +372 501 6554 bilge water feed and the toughest emulsions. The result is
e-mail: ts@bsr.ee less time in the engine room. Not to mention less filter waste
and reject. Read more: www.alfalaval.com/marine
• Carrying out of thickness measurements with
ultrasonic equipment of hull structures
according to survey programs of Classification
Societies:LR,GL,RINA,ABS,DNV,BV,RMRS,NKK

• Examination of ship hulls according to the PureBilge

survey programs of Classification Societies. – a dynamic
force in bilge
water treatment
• Competitive prices and terms of payment

With a turnover of 416.9 million euros
gross in 2008, and an increase of 1.34%
in passengers to a record 803.6 million,
Wiener Linien is truly a model railway.
Diane Mannion speaks to the Chief
Communications Officer, Mr Answer
Lang, about the secrets of the company’s
success.
It was back in 1865 that the first horse
drawn tram passed through the streets
of Vienna, but it wasn’t until 1899 that the
first public transport company was
founded in the city. Wiener Linien, as we
know it today, began in 1949, and after
that date the City of Vienna attained full
ownership. Nowadays Wiener Linien is
still 100% owned by the city of Vienna,
which contributes 30% towards running
costs, with Wiener Linien meeting the
remaining 70%.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
WIENER LINIEN
Model Railways
Currently Wiener Linien transports 803.6
million passengers, which represents 35%
of all journeys made in the city of Vienna
compared to 32% made by car. This means
that public transport is more widely used
in Vienna than in any other major city in
Europe. This figure continues to grow,
with an increase of 1.34% of users in
2008.
So why is the Vienna transport system so
successful and so widely used by members
of the public? The Chief Communications
Officer of Wiener Linien Gmbh & Co, Mr
Answer Lang, attributes this to several
factors. Firstly, public transport in Vienna
is cheaper than in most other European
countries. The second reason is due to
efficiency as Vienna has a very modern
underground system, which is only 30
years old, and the bus and train services
are frequent. Thirdly, the public transport
system is very accessible. 97% of public
transport vehicles can be reached by
disabled people, and the public transport
system in general covers 96% of Vienna.
Customer service
Apart from the growth of the company,
crucially, in a recent customer service
survey, 92% of respondents indicated that
they were happy with the service provided.
With regard to customer satisfaction, Mr
Lang comments: “Our staff are specifically
educated in customer services, and receive
periodical training where the main points
relating to customer services are repeated.”
Mr Lang also believes that a great deal of
the customer satisfaction relates again to
accessibility. Their transport systems are
barrier free and are therefore easily
accessible to the disabled, people with
pushchairs and the elderly.
60 June-July 2010
 New U2 Line Plan

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 61 June-July 2010

 WIENER LINIEN
Model Railways

Representatives from Wiener Linien

regularly meet with other public transport
companies all over Europe to share ideas
on improving systems. When asked what
recommendations he would make to other
public transport companies who want to
raise their standards, Mr Lang advises:
“Customer service is the most important,
and investment in equipment such as
trains and buses to keep them up to a
modern standard. To increase the number
of users there has to be an attractive price
level, and it is important to focus on what
is affordable so that the company can
finance the system. Therefore we have to
find a balance; prices cannot be too low
for the company to afford them, but they
cannot be too high. I believe that Wiener
Linien are good at getting this balance
right with regard to pricing.”
The efficient public transport system also
makes Vienna an attractive place for
companies who want to conduct business
there. As Vienna is a congress city, it is
important for people to be able to travel
easily from the airport to the Congress
Centre, and the public transport system
facilitates this.
In 2008 Wiener Linien rose to the challenge
of transporting 1.2 million football fans
that came to Austria for the European cup.
This meant that on match days the number
of passengers increased by up to 800,000.
Preparations for these extra requirements
took place over several years leading up
to EURO 2008 ensuring that the provision
of public transport was a success.

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 62 June-July 2010

Klip Wien
Wiener Linien is involved in the ‘Klip Wien’
climate protection programme in Vienna.
This programme focuses on a reduction
in CO2 emissions and has set targets for
CO2 reduction. As part of those targets,
by 2020, travel by public transport should
reach 40% of the total transport methods
used in Vienna, and car travel should be
reduced to 25%. The city is already well
on the way to meeting that target as 35%
of all journeys in Vienna are currently made
by public transport.
Apart from its involvement in the Klip
Wien programme, Wiener Linien is also
active in other areas concerned with the
environment. One of its technical measures
is heat storage. So, for example, when a
tram is breaking it develops heat which
is normally lost in the atmosphere, but
the company saves that heat so that it can
be re-used. Another way in which the
company looks after the environment is
by only using buses that have reduced
emissions and, in fact, this is a primary
requirement when purchasing new
buses.

Latest developments
Plans to extend the U2 line in the
underground network by over 5 kilometres
will bring the total underground network
in Vienna to almost 80 kilometres. This is
the next stage in the company’s proposals
and is already fully financed. This will
include six more stations bringing the
total to 101 stations. Next will be the
extension of line number one to the South,
with six more stations intended. The
company’s plans will take until 2019 to
execute.
With regard to other developments Mr
Lang states: “The most impressive
development of the last years is the
development of a tramway, together with Tunnel Rannersdorf Subway Vienna
Siemens, of which the entrance height is
19 centimetres; therefore it is possible to
get into the tram directly from the
sidewalk. These are called ultra low floor
(ULF) trams and are great for pushchairs,
- Subways
wheelchairs and other users.” ULF trams
- Tunnels
have been in service for eight years now,
- Bridges
and Wiener Linien will be increasing the
- Roads, Highways & , 9 , /  ( 1 * , 1 ( ( 5 6
number of ULF vehicles to 300 by 2014.
- Building Construction
- Building physics A-1040 Vienna, Mommsengasse 31
Tel. +43(1) 505 56 87-0, office@step-zt.at
- Building supervision www.step-zt.at

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 63 June-July 2010


With a history dating back to 1919, NAC
Nordic Air & Sea Cargo is an establis-
hed company providing clients with a
range of tailor-made logistics services.
Speaking to Gabrielle Brown, Product
Manager Mr Jan Boklund explains how
the company’s local knowledge and
dedication to meeting clients’ specific
needs - no matter how challenging - sets
them apart from the competition.
Mr Boklund has an exceptionally varied
role and his responsibilities extend from
business development, through quality
control to operations management. Based
in NAC Nordic’s Swedish headquarters in
Jönköping, Mr Boklund is dedicated to
ensuring the NAC brand is represented
and embodied by all elements of the
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
NAC NORDIC AIR AND SEA CARGO
Your Local Nordic Carrier
business. “I ensure that our agents and
clients always receive the best level of
service and that our conduct reflects all
that NAC stands for.” This is no easy feat
when you consider that NAC provides its
air freight and shipping services to clients
worldwide and has twenty offices located
throughout Scandinavia.
Local knowledge
servicing clients
worldwide
With operations in Denmark, Finland,
Norway and Sweden, NAC makes a point
of exploiting its staff ’s local knowledge
to provide clients with all the benefits of
a large organization coupled with the
specialist expertise that comes from
working on a smaller, regional scale. “We
maintain a detailed local knowledge. This
is a key focus for our business. Whereas
our competitors might operate from two
or three offices, we have a more diluted,
widespread presence, which means our
staff are familiar with local businesses.”
Without such a comprehensive coverage
of the Nordic region, NAC would not be
able to exploit every possible avenue of
opportunity for its clients. The company’s
specialised local knowledge enables it to
approach each client’s’ requirements
individually, appreciating the opportunities
and limitations that every region provides
and customizing the service accordingly.
64 June-July 2010
Providing a one-stop
personalized shop
NAC describes itself as being a ‘one-stop-
shop’ meaning its clients should be able
to turn to the company for assistance with
all elements of logistics. “We’ve always
been able to offer our clients more than
a straightforward cargo or freight service,
but this concept of offering a fully
integrated solution for clients has
intensified in the last five years.” says Mr
Boklund who goes on to say that clients
today expect to have only one point of
contact to address all their logistics
needs.
On its website, NAC states that its
philosophy is to ‘identify customers’ needs

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 65 June-July 2010


and satisfy those needs for every shipment
handled‘. This objective of treating every
shipment as a special project means that
each transaction is dealt with not by a
formulaic process but instead by
individually probing and exploring how
best to ensure all needs are met. “We are
open to the challenge, whatever it
involves. This is our strength. We rarely
refuse our agents’ or clients’ requests. But
if we do have to decline, we will only do
so once we have investigated all
opportunities. We do extensive research
and planning, and we do so quickly,” says
Mr Boklund.
Another stated aim of NAC’s is to keep
the lines of communication between
themselves and their clients as open as
possible. This is not only applied to existing
clients but also to potential customers,
even if their requirements cannot be met
by NAC at the time. NAC makes a point of
keeping all parties informed and updated,
regardless of the potential for the project
to go beyond the initial research stages.
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
NAC NORDIC AIR AND SEA CARGO
Your Local Nordic Carrier
A globally competitive
operation
NAC’s primary objective is to fulfil the
requirements of its foreign agents, who
do not have their own facilities in
Scandinavia. It is therefore NAC’s role to
act as their agents’ ’Scandinavian branch’
of operations, and ensure that they are
competitive. “Most of our shipments are
payable abroad - we have shipments from
most of the main exporters here in
Sweden. We have to enable them to
remain competitive, and we continuously
develop our service to be as flexible and
as accommodating as possible.”
Recently NAC organized for a series of
factories to be transported abroad.
Although it was a complex and involving
task, the company was able to deliver by
utilizing a combination of its air freight
and ocean freight facilities, and of course
its network of around 100 well-informed
staff. “We hope to exceed our agents’
expectations. This means getting back to
them quickly - like we would if we were
a small company - but providing a
competitive service like that of the large
corporation. And whether our clients are
small or large, we offer the same personally
focused service.”
On the horizon
This year will see NAC launch an entirely
new website. “It will give our agents a
proper feeling of being represented by
us,”explains Mr Boklund. This development
is in line with a general sense that business
is on the up – not just for NAC but for
industry across Europe. Whereas 2009 saw
a 35% reduction in turnover for NAC, the
mood for the future is one of optimism.
“Everything’s looking good for this year.
I see growth across industries with all sorts
of exports, even if this growth will be at
a steadier pace than we have come to
expect.”
66 June-July 2010
 Freightnet
International

m•ˆŒŠ‹—‘ˆ—êp‘—ˆ•‘„—Œ’‘„ê¾ê
w•’˜‡ê—’ꅈꗋˆêuhj꓄•—‘ˆ•êŒ‘êh˜–—•„Œ„êê
j’‘—„†—®êm•ˆŒŠ‹—‘ˆ—êp‘—ˆ•‘„—Œ’‘„êÂ}Œ†Ãêw—œê—‡êê
w­v­êi’›ê¥£§êê
{˜„„•Œ‘ˆê}Œ†ê£ª¤£êÂtˆ…’˜•‘ˆÃ±êh˜–—•„Œ„êê
wo®ê¦¡£Ãê©££¥ê¤¥¡¡êêm®ê¦¡£Ãê©££¥ê¢¤¨¢êê
ššš­‰•ˆŒŠ‹—‘ˆ—­†’­„˜

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 67 June-July 2010


Albert Ziegler GmbH & Co. KG produce
a comprehensive range of appliances
and equipment for the fire service, from
engines to hoses, and have been doing
so since1891. Ziegler’s Sales Director for
Export, Mr Jörg Hitzler, talks to Diane
Mannion about this successful family
owned company.
To purchase a fire engine from Albert
Ziegler GmbH & Co, you can pay anything
from under 100,000 euros up to a
staggering 1 million euros. The price is
not surprising, however, when you
consider the technology that goes into
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ALBERT ZIEGLER
Emergency Supplies
the most expensive vehicle, the Airport
Crash Tender Z8.
This vehicle is fully equipped with a
hydraulic telescopic boom, which has
electrically swivelling and tilting spotlights,
a remote control monitor on the top of
the vehicle, a piercing unit and a thermal
camera if required. This enables the crew
to access and see into high areas and to
fight in-cab fires on aircrafts by spraying
water inside the cab of the aeroplane. The
water tank carries a plentiful supply
amounting to 13,500 litres, and there is
also a 1,600 litre foam tank. Other onboard
equipment includes a Dynawatt generator,
integrated lights for illumination of the
surroundings, equipment lockers, an
electro hydraulic front winch and a rear
view camera. These are just a few of the
numerous items that are included with
the Airport Crash Tender Z8, but it gives
you a brief glimpse of the sophistication
of these vehicles.
The company
Albert Ziegler produces around 600
vehicles a year and these vary in size up
to a tremendous 43 tonnes, which is the
68 June-July 2010
Airport Crash Tender Z8. Nearly all of the
vehicles are custom made, although
sometimes the same chassis is used. This
is bought in from chassis manufacturers
and is often customised for fire engines.
The range of vehicles is incredible and
these are adapted to suit the purpose, so
for example, the company supplies quick
response light rescue vehicles, fire fighting
vehicles for bush and forest fires and fire
fighting vehicles for industry, in addition
to the Airport Crash Tender Z8 mentioned
above. Depending on the type of vehicle
quite a few options can be realized, such
as pneumatic light masts, hydraulic
winches, built in generators, roof or
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
bumper monitors, special foam admixing
systems, CAFS-units and others.
The company was founded in 1891, and
although it started out as a fire hose
weaving mill, it soon went on to produce
and sell hose maintenance and fire-
fighting equipment. Nowadays it produces
the entire range of fire fighting apparatus
and accessories including vehicles, pumps,
monitors and hoses, and it supplies fire
departments throughout the world with
fire fighting equipment and uniforms. The
only item that Ziegler produces which
isn’t fire related but can be used for fire
fighting as well is the anti-riot vehicle, and
the company has vast experience in this
field. Ziegler’s number one market for all
products is in Germany, which accounts
for 75% of turnover.
Mr Hitzler advised that in terms of size
Ziegler is ranked in the first five fire
equipment producing companies in
Europe and the top 10 worldwide.
Competition is fierce with countless
smaller companies supplying various local
authorities. Although still a family owned
company Ziegler achieved a considerable
turnover of 160 million euros in the last
financial year and income is increasing
steadily. When asked how the company
69 June-July 2010

manages to stay at the top in such a
competitive industry, Mr Hitzler comments
that it is down to: “Good reliability, leading
in quality and being one step ahead in
development.” He also points out that
there are many other successful companies
in the industry.
Safety
Because of the nature of the industry
safety is a prerequisite and Ziegler’s
employees go to great lengths to ensure
that their vehicles and apparatus have
integral safety features. For example, they
always mount the superstructure on a
mounting frame which is fixed onto the
chassis in a secure manner. For many years
the company has received DIN EN ISO
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
ALBERT ZIEGLER
Emergency Supplies
9001 certification and has to undergo
regular audits in order to meet the
required standards.
Fire crews need to ensure that they can
access equipment quickly and safely so
Ziegler vehicles are built with this in mind.
The equipment lockers are arranged in a
way that is practical and makes them easy
to remove. In low level vehicles the side
flap below the drop shutter for the
equipment lockers doubles as a walk-on
ramp, and this has a non-skid surface.
Electronic controls are simple and safe to
operate. The vehicles themselves are
extremely rugged and built to last. They
are also strong enough to take the weight
of fire crews who sometimes need to stand
on the roof of the vehicle. Not without
reason the company’s slogan is: “ZIEGLER,
we provide safety”.
Innovations
Ziegler staff work in close cooperation
with other countries and are continually
improving their products and services.
They also have to follow road regulations
which have changed a lot over the years
w i t h re g a rd s to e nv i ro n m e n t a l
considerations.
In terms of new innovations, Ziegler
unveiled their ALPAS system for the first
time at the Interschutz fair in 2000. ALPAS
stands for Aluminium Panel System, which
is a revolutionary design and has been
hugely successful. It replaces the previous
model of a steel frame covered with plastic
or aluminium, and has a high resistance
to torsion and bending. Apart from its
rigidity, the ALPAS system allows for
70 June-July 2010
flexibility in customising the design and
the interior fixtures for different customers.
For Ziegler function is more important
than design but they often get requests
from clients to customise vehicles for
aesthetic purposes.
The company presented other new ideas
at the International Trade Fair Interschutz
2010 at Leipzig in June. (Mr Hitzler was
unable to disclose any details at the time
of the interview as these innovations were
planned to be exhibited for the first time
at the trade fair.)
With regard to future objectives, the
company states: “We strive for consistent
growth through continuous improvement
of our productivity and competitiveness.
Ziegler is the market leader in selected
business segments. Our aim is to further
strengthen our excellent positioning.”

The best connection for special vehicles

New product development, upgrading, improvement:

operating, switching, interfacing and distributing - LEONI your partner for
electric, electronic and mechanical development. Starting from the layout
draft of our electrical circuit, we offer tailor made solutions from assembly
up to installation and also legal and official controls and inspections.
www.leoni-special-vehicles.com

The Quality Connection


Amazing ‘pulse of
darkness’ ray tech
birthed in US gov labs
US government boffins say they have
invented a fiendishly cunning new kind
of laser running on quantum dots
which, rather than producing pulses
of light, actually emits pulses of intense
darkness.
Unsurprisingly but mildly sinisterly,
the new invention has been dubbed
the “dark pulse laser”. It works using
extremely clever quantum dots which
unlike regular boring quantum dots
are made out of “nanostructured
semiconductor materials” grown in
special US government labs.
“Quantum dots are known for unusual
behaviour,” according to a statement
issued by the labs in question. When
electricity is put into these dots, the
nano cunningness causes them all to
behave like individual atoms and thus
they all emit light at the same frequency
in time with each other – hence it is
coherent laser light.
But that’s not the clever part. The clever
part is this:
The new laser depends on the qdots’
unusual energy dynamics, which have
the effect of stabilizing dark pulses.
After emitting light, qdots recover
energy from within rapidly (in about 1
picosecond) but more slowly (in about
200 picoseconds) from energy inputs
originating outside the qdots in the
laser cavity. This creates a progression
of overall energy gains gradually giving
way to overall energy losses. Eventually,
the laser reaches a steady state of
Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu
Technology news
repeated brief intensity dips—a drop
of about 70 percent—from the con-
tinuous light background.
Thus the laser, brilliantly, is able to
almost turn itself off and go dark. In
itself this would be rather unimpressive,
but the dark pulse laser goes briefly
dark and then comes back on in just
90 picoseconds. As the dark-pulse can
be measured, the laser is thus a means
of measuring time very precisely.
The boffins of the US National Institute
of Standards and Technology, who
unlocked the secrets of darkness, are
chuffed as ninepence with their new
kit. They consider that it could be
handy in the next generation of optical
atomic ultraclocks and/or superpowered
networking and comms kit of the
future.
Brown chemists
report promising
advance in fuel-cell
technology
Chemists at Brown University and the Oak
Ridge National Laboratory, both in the
United States, are reporting a promising
advance in fuel-cell technology. Fuel cells
require a catalyst that can operate
efficiently and last a long time. The
precious metal platinum has been the
catalyst of choice for most researchers,
but it has several drawbacks: it’s expensive
and it breaks down over time in fuel-cell
reactions. The researchers at Brown have
demonstrated that a nanoparticle with a
palladium core and an iron-platinum shell
outperforms commercially available pure-
platinum catalysts, and lasts longer. In
laboratory tests, the new palladium/iron-
platinum nanoparticles generated 12
times more current than the pure platinum
ones, with the output remaining consistent
over 10,000 cycles - whereas the platinum
models began to deteriorate after 1,000
cycles. Vismadeb Mazumder, a graduate
student and co-author of the study, says
“[T]his is a very good demonstration that
catalysts with a core and a shell can be
made readily in half-gram quantities in
the lab, they’re active, and they last. The
next step is to scale them up for commercial
use, and we are confident we’ll be able to
do that.” Their findings were reported in
the Journal of the American Chemical
Society.
72 Jun
June-July
n e-July 2010

Arrayit Corporation
technology may
provide vital clues to
detoxification of the
oceans
Arrayit Corporation is a leader in life
sciences and healthcare technology,
reports today that the company has
installed its patented and proprietary
NanoPrint(TM) LM60 Enterprise Level
Microarrayer at the Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research
Organization (CSRIO) in Hobart, Tasmania,
Australia. The CSRIO is supplementing its
next generation sequencing technology
with the Arrayit microarray platform for
additional speed, throughput and
affordability.
Arrayit’s microarray platform empowers
the CSRIO to manufacture microarrays,
glass substrates or “chips” containing
microscopic DNA spots that enable the
rapid identification of bacteria and other
microbes present in the Indian Ocean and
Tasman Sea. The Environmental Genomics
Team at the Marine and Atmospheric
Research and Wealth from Oceans,
National Research Flagship is seeking to
advance microbial genomics by pin-
pointing the critical role hundreds of
different microorganisms play in various
ocean sub-environments. Oceanic
microbes sustain life on earth by providing
oxygen, nutrients and bioremediation
functions at all ocean depths including
the ocean floor.
Arrayit Corporation Executive Todd
Martinsky said, “We are pleased that CSRIO
chose NanoPrint(TM) to further oceanic
microbial research. This information is vital
to global ecology including understanding
and implementing the most efficient means
of remediating the oil spill in the Gulf of
Mexico.” Arrayit Corporation President Dr.
Mark Schena added, “Ocean bacteria
naturally degrade millions of metric tons
of oil each year by converting hydrocarbons
seeping from the ocean floor into harmless
CO2 and H2O. Arrayit is proud to facilitate
scientific research into natural processes
such as these that are keys to neutralizing
massive ecological challenges.”
 “For me the two things in life that
I cannot live without are my music and
my wonderful six year old son,”
says Ms Sandra Bojić, the Sales and consists of a quick fruit snack. By 6.50 am simply playing children’s games. We don’t
Marketing Director of M-Profil. Her role I am on the road and on the way to the watch TV as a family and I catch up with
is a demanding one in a thriving com - office. I dress formally for work and mostly the news by reading e-newspapers. I find
pany that specialises in the production wear Croatian brands. that I don’t have enough time for hobbies,
of metal components for the construc- but on those rare moments when I do
When I arrive at work the first thing I do
tion industry. This 15 year old company have some time, I like to do clay modeling
is check my emails. I communicate a lot
is based in Croatia and is growing and I find it helps me unwind at the end
by email, but also by telephone and face
continually, with plans to expand into of the day.
to face when dealing with colleagues and
the European market. Since M-Profil was clients. Attendance at meetings is also a At weekends we spend time with friends
founded the staff has increased from significant part of my role, and I believe and I occasionally go to the theatre with
4 people to 520, and the company is that excellent communication and my best friend. I also like to go biking now
constantly developing innovative new delegation of tasks is very important. and again and in the Winter I go to ‘Tai Bo’
products. classes.
I enjoy the diversity of my job and the
dynamics involved. I spend much of my As each working day draws to a close
work time developing our customer I usually summarize my day and set goals
Sandra Bojić, the Sales and Marketing network and dealing with marketing for what I want to achieve tomorrow.
Director of M-Profil, is 37 years of age, and issues. My position involves a degree of I don’t read novels at bedtime. In fact, my
was born on the Adriatic coast, in the town travel by car and plane, which I enjoy, current reading material is a parenting
of Split. Interestingly, this town was also
although I do miss my family if I am away book that helps me to focus on how to
the birth place of the Roman Emperor,
for lengthy periods. reach a balance between being a great
Diocletian. Ms Bojić lives with her partner
mum and being successful in what I do
and son in a house with a garden. At 10 am I usually take brunch, which I
for a living.”
buy from our outsourced canteen. I find
As well as being responsible for the
it relaxing to listen to the radio during The support of her family is a constant in
marketing strategy for the whole of
brunch, but for me the most important Ms Bojić’s life. She has a number of
M-Profil, Ms Bojić participates in meetings
meal of the day is lunch. I eat this with my passions, one of which is the Mediterranean
as part of a supervisory board and is a
family usually at about 4pm as I finish lifestyle. Ms Bojić was also heavily
member of the European project ‘EASIE’
work at 3.30 pm on most days. I cook influenced by the two and a half years she
(Ensuring Advancement in Sandwich
seasonal food for my family and we gather spent in London in the UK. By far her
Construction through Innovation and
around the table and discuss our daily biggest passions though are her family
Exploitation). Ms Bojić combines her busy
activities during the meal. On special and her music, as she says, “for me the
work schedule with caring for her six year
occasions we will eat out at a restaurant two things in life that I cannot live without
old son.
when I will indulge in the occasional glass are my music and my wonderful six year
Here she describes a typical day in her of wine. I also have a sweet tooth and a old son.”
life: nice piece of quality chocolate or some
Her motto in life is, “live and let live a great
ice cream is always a welcome treat.
“My alarm usually wakes me at 6.15 am, life”. When summing up the characteristics
and I then get my son ready for kinder- In the evenings I like to set time aside for that define her as a person, Ms Bojić
garten. We eat breakfast as a family; my my son, when we do different activities comments that they are, “strong will and
son, my partner and me, and this usually such as drawing, painting, writing or perseverance.”

advertisers list
Alfa Laval Nordic AS ...................................................................................................59
Det Norske Veritas Petroleum Services ......................................................................59
EDI.SON Energietechnik GmbH ..................................................................................35
Enikon AG .................................................................................................................55
EuroCijev d.o.o. .........................................................................................................39
FKAB (Fartygskonstruktioner AB) ...............................................................................58
Freightnet International (Vic) Pty Ltd ........................................................................67
Hamon Thermal Germany GmbH................................................................................31
Invec-Remacon d.o.o. ................................................................................................51
KMU Umweltschutz GmbH .........................................................................................47
LEONI Kabelsysteme GmbH .......................................................................................71
PA-EL d.o.o. ...............................................................................................................39
Reschwitzer Saugbagger Produktions GmbH ..............................................................31
Share Electronics Co., Ltd ...........................................................................................13
Stella & Stengel und Partner Ziviltechnikergesellschaft m.b.H. ...................................63
Tehnomet Survey OÜ ................................................................................................59
Verbraeken Construction NV ......................................................................................27
Wilhelmsen Ships Service OY AB ................................................................................59

Trade & Investment | www.trade-investment.eu 74 June-July 2010

 For the very best transformers only
S
mit Transformatoren B.V. is an
internationally operating company which has
been developing and manufacturing power
transformers for the distribution and genera-
tion of electric energy since 1913. As part of
the SGB-Smit Group, the company is an important
player in the sector up to 1000 MVA/525 kV. Smit
customers include major energy companies, indu-
stries and transmission and distribution firms
in Europe, North America, Africa and the Middle
East.

Smit was founded nearly 100 years ago, but

nevertheless continues to be a company that is
young at heart with an inquisitive urge to moder-
nise. This combination of proven technology and
a constant drive to innovate have proved to be
important starting principles when it comes to:

•meeting the specific demands of

the customer on the basis of a
unique design and in-depth
knowledge of production techniques;
•linking the fully integrated design
programmes to a carefully balanced
production and test environment;
•further optimizing the production
processes that lead to constant
improvements in the quality and
is: reliability of the end product;
t
A high conductivity electrical grade aluminium for transformer •testing transformers in a laborato-
ry environment with state of the
windings art equipment;
t
Produced using sustainable hydro electric power •realizing air cushion transport for
individual components as well as for complete
t
Available in sizes to suit the widest range of transformer designs units;
t
Infinitely recyclable - without any degradation of quality or • the further development of Smit Transforma-
tor Service: our own service department,
properties which performs maintenance to transformers of
various makes;
t
A modern cost and conductivity effective alternative to tradi- • realizing our own cargo-handling dock along
tional copper windings the Maas-Waalkanaal, which is a mere stone’s
throw away from the factory.
t
Available worldwide
For the very best transformers only

Hydro Rolled Products Smit Transformatoren B.V.

Karmøy Rolling Mill AS Groenestraat 336
© Hydro 2009 – Photo: Terje S. Knudsen

NO-4265 Håvik
6531 JC Nijmegen
Norway
T. +31(0)24 356 89 11
Email: info@smit-trafo.nl
Market Manager - Kristian Midbøe
www.smittransformatoren.nl
Tel: +47 52 85 46 17
E-mail: kristian.midboe@hydro.com
www.hydro.com

advertentie Trade & Investment Mag. Smit.indd 1 11-02-10 09:38

 For the very best transformers only
S
mit Transformatoren B.V. is an
internationally operating company which has
been developing and manufacturing power
transformers for the distribution and genera-
tion of electric energy since 1913. As part of
the SGB-Smit Group, the company is an important
player in the sector up to 1000 MVA/525 kV. Smit
customers include major energy companies, indu-
stries and transmission and distribution firms
in Europe, North America, Africa and the Middle
East.

Smit was founded nearly 100 years ago, but

nevertheless continues to be a company that is
young at heart with an inquisitive urge to moder-
nise. This combination of proven technology and
a constant drive to innovate have proved to be
important starting principles when it comes to:

•meeting the specific demands of

the customer on the basis of a
unique design and in-depth
knowledge of production techniques;
•linking the fully integrated design
programmes to a carefully balanced
production and test environment;
•further optimizing the production
processes that lead to constant
improvements in the quality and
is: reliability of the end product;
t
A high conductivity electrical grade aluminium for transformer •testing transformers in a laborato-
ry environment with state of the
windings art equipment;
t
Produced using sustainable hydro electric power •realizing air cushion transport for
individual components as well as for complete
t
Available in sizes to suit the widest range of transformer designs units;
t
Infinitely recyclable - without any degradation of quality or • the further development of Smit Transforma-
tor Service: our own service department,
properties which performs maintenance to transformers of
various makes;
t
A modern cost and conductivity effective alternative to tradi- • realizing our own cargo-handling dock along
tional copper windings the Maas-Waalkanaal, which is a mere stone’s
throw away from the factory.
t
Available worldwide
For the very best transformers only

Hydro Rolled Products Smit Transformatoren B.V.

Karmøy Rolling Mill AS Groenestraat 336
© Hydro 2009 – Photo: Terje S. Knudsen

NO-4265 Håvik
6531 JC Nijmegen
Norway
T. +31(0)24 356 89 11
Email: info@smit-trafo.nl
Market Manager - Kristian Midbøe
www.smittransformatoren.nl
Tel: +47 52 85 46 17
E-mail: kristian.midboe@hydro.com
www.hydro.com

advertentie Trade & Investment Mag. Smit.indd 1 11-02-10 09:38